t 



^ - -'— * 



CATALOGrUE. 



OF 



STANDAKD CATHOI.IC BOOKS 



PUBLISHED BY 



F. IiUCAS, Jr. 



JVo. 138 Market street, Baltimore. 







STANDARD CATHOL,IC BOOKS 

PUBLISHED BY 

P. IiUCAS, Jr. 

JVb. 138 Market street^ Baltimore. 



THE HOLY BIBLE, in quarto, translated from the Latin vul- 
gate, diligently compared with the Hebrew and Greek editions ; 
with references and an historical and chronological index, by the 
Right Rev. Dr. Challoner. This valuable work is embellished 
with 11 elegant engravings, on the following subjects: 

1. Frontispiece. 

2. A view of the Cathedral, and a fac .-simile of the appro- 
bation of the Most Rev. Archbishop. 

3. Thft Tnwftr of Babel. ^ 

4. Moses at the Burning Bush. ^^ 

5. The Temptation of Job. 

6. The Vision of Daniel, 

7. The Wise Men offering Presents. 

8. Christ before the Doctors. 

9. Little Children brought to Christ. 

10. Christ giving Peter the Keys. 

11. Judas taking the price of Blood. 

In 'plain hindingi $7.50. 

Tke above may be had in calf, extra, morocco, or russia binding. 

jipprobation of the Most Reverend Archbishop of Baltimore. 
This stereotype edition of the Doway Bible, is published by Fielding Lucas, 
Jr. Baltimore, with our entire approbation, and we do hereby recommend it 
as a genuine copy of the excellent translation of the Holy Scriptures, long 
since sanctioned by the Prelates of America and Europe. 

{Seal) t JAMES, Archbishop of Baltimore. 

E. DAMPHOaX, Secretary. 

Another edition beautifully printed on a superfine wove royal 
paper, embellished in the same manner as the preceding, neatly 
bound, $10; also in fine, super, and super extra binding, from $12 
to $20 per copy. 

4^This edition is the handsomest that has ever been printed in this 
country. 

I 



4 Standard Catholic Books 

THE NEW TESTAMENT, translated from the latin vulgate, 
diligently compared with the original Greek, 

32 mo. ^ 'plain hinding, 50 cts 
Another edition on superfine paper, . . . . 62 i 

Another edition heautifully printed on superfine wove Post, 
with large margins^ . . . . - . . .874 
^:^The above may be had in calf, extra, morocco, (with or with- 
out tuck,) and russia binding. 

Another edition, 12 mo. plain binding, 50 cts. 
do do do half binding, 371 

THE HISTORY OF THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENT, 

interspersed with moral and instructive reflections, chiefly taken 
from the Holy Fathers. — By J. Reeve. 

Svo., plain binding, $1.25. 

In the historical account, which is here given of the Inspired Writings, the 
thread of the narration is carefully connected, and carried on with as few 
interruptions as the nature of the work will allow. Facts are related as they 
occur, according to the order of time, in which they happened, and not accor- 
ding to the arransement of books, as they stand in the common Bible. From 
the creation of tlfa world to the coming of our blessed Saviour, the best chro- 
nologists reckon four thousand years, which they divide into six unequal 
periods, called ages. This computation of years is carefully marked at the 
head of each paragraph, and this division of time into ages is regularly 
observed, as a relief to the reader's memory, in helping him to fix and retain 
-the date of memorable events. 

A HISTORY OF THE CHURCH, from its establishment to 
the Reformation. — By the Rev. C. C. Pise, A. M. 

5 vuls, 8 vo. hoards, jJlO. 

"The Rev. author places the prominent and leading facts in such order as 
to give to general readers a sufficient knowledge of the occurrences regarding 
religion: this is done in a very clear, simple, and pleasing style: there is no 
attempt at decoration, which would be altogether out of place in an historical 
work: perspicuity and orderly method, are the essential characteristics of 
the historian : and the author of this work appears to us, to have fully attain- 
ed it. As far as we could judge by some paragraphs which we have read, 
the style is uniformly and pleasingly sustained. The index is accurately and 
judiciously compiled ; so that the references are simple and abundant.*** It 
is a workVhich ought to be generally read.'' — U. S. Catholic JMlscellany. 

" To the man of faith, and to the lover of truth, the history of the Christian 
Church is a tre-asure — in it we find the most solid, the most consoling, and the 
most useful truths. He beholds Christianity in its native grandeur and subli- 
mity, and is enabled to separate it from the dro_ss with which ignorance and 
superstition have often disfigured it. In the work before us, thewriter shews 
extensive research, unwearied industry, and enlightened views — his style is 
good, and entirely free from meretricious ornament — indeed we may safely 
say, that he has done justice to his own abilities and learning, as well as to the 
victorious merits of his subject. We have remarked with particular satisfac- 
tion, that without entering into the field of controversy, he has exhibited to 
his Protestant as well as to his Catholic readers, a faithful portrait of the Ca- 
tholic religion, which is calculated to remove the prejudices of the former, and 
which is highly gratifying to the feelings of the latter. With Mr. Pise's ar- 
rangement we are well pleased — it is distinct — it enables the reader to master 
the most difficult subject of dates. The general subject is exhibited in a 
manner well calculated to establish it permanently in the memory— it will- 
lay a long and lasting foundation for a knowledge of Church History. 

Truth-.Teller^ 



Published by F, Lucas, Jr. 5 

A COMPENDIOUS ABSTRACT OF THE HISTORY OF THE 
CHURCH OF CHRIST, from its foundation to the eighteenth 
century; illustrated with remarkable events and occurrences, and 
a brief detail of the eminent virtues and apostolic labours of the 
Holy Fathers, &c.— By the Rev. Wm. Gahan, 0. S. A. 

12 mo., -plain h'lndin^, §1. 

•'All the facts related in this compendious abstract of Church History, have 
been faithfully taken from the most unquestionable authorsj and are founded 
upon original monuments, and autlientic records. "—Pre/ace. 

INSTRUCTIONS ON THE PRAYERS AND CEREMONIES 
OF THE HOLY SACRIFICE OF THE MASS. Translated 
from the French of M, Cochin, and arranged for each Sunday 
throughout the year. 1 vol. royal 12 mo. cloth backs, |1. 

"These instructions appear well adapted to strengthen the faith, and ani- 
mate the piety of the faithful; as well as to inspire those sentiments of vene- 
ration, gratitude and love, with which all should be penetrated who assist at 
the adorable sacrifice, where the Son of God himself, is at once the priest and 
the victim." — Approbation of the Sorbcnnc. 

THE CATHOLIC MANUAL, containing a selection of prayers 
and devotional exercises, for the use of Christians in every state 
of life; embellished with four beautiful engravings. 

18 mo., plain binding, ^l. 

This popular Manual was prepared by the direction, and under the super- 
intendence of the iate Archbishop Marechal. It is printed with accuracy and 
elegance, and embellished with four engravings, atnong which is one giving 
a view of the grand altar of the Cathedral, and another of the admired picture 
of the "Descent from the cross," which was presented to the Cathedral by 
Louis XVIII. 

THE CHRISTIAN'S GUIDE, with the evening office of the 
Church, in Latin and English, and a selection of pious hymns. 
Embellished with six beautiful engravings. 

32 mo., plain binding, 50 cts. 

Anoiher edition elegantly printed on folio post loriting paper, 18 mo. 
fine binding, at various prices — from 2 to 3 dollars. 
Another edition xoell bound in sheep, - - 32 mo. 25 cts. 

This Prayer Book was compiled under the inspection of the Most Reverend 
Archbishop Carroll. The present edition has been much improved, in the 
arrangement of the contents, in the correction of many errors that had 
passed unnoticed in former editions, and also by some important additionsj it 
may now be fairly estimated as a most perfect pocket Manual. 

THE POCKET MISSAL, OR COMPANION TO THE ALTAR, 

for the Sundays and Principal Festivals throughout the year, with 
an engraving representing the Holy Family. 

18 mo., plain binding, 75 cts. 

A new and beautiful edition carefully revised, containing the Masses for the 
Sundays and Principal Festivals throughout the year, with short instructions, 
of which the following is an extract: 

To accompany the Priest in the prayers which he recites at the time of cele- 
brating the Eucharistic Sacrifice, is a practice, which the ablest divines have 
strenuously recommended. St. CAry.^ostow, the great luminary ol thechurch, 
exhortsthe faithful of his time, "to bring the most earneist attention with them 



6 Standard Catholic Books 

on this awful occasion, and to consider, that the priest and people raake but 
one body: tliut therefore, they should join witli each other.*' (Horn, in 2 Cor.) 
The learned Rodrigue: {Par. '-2. Tr. 5. C. 15.; holds the same opinion: "Tho' 
it be the priest only that speaks, and with his'hands offers this sacrifice, yet all 
the faithful offer it likewise with him: which being supposed, I declare,'"' says 
he, ' = the best method of hearing mass is, to go on jointly with the Priest, offer- 
ing up the sacrifice, and doing as much as may be) the' very same he does." 
The Rev. Mr. Gother, whose reputation for piety and learning is so well esta- 
blished, asserts, '-that tho' there is no positive precept for this practice, yet, 
that from the very tenor of the liturgy, it is evidently agreeable to the spirit 
and intention of the church." 

We will offer a few remarks concerning the plan of this work. 

The prayers and portions of scripture, of which the liturgy of the Catholic 
Church is composed, are. partly unalterably the same, and partly different 
every day: the fixed Viud invariable parts are contained in the Ordinarv^ the 
reader may easily discover the places wherein the latter are to be introduced 
by the. prayers, which occupy their several stations in the Ordinary, and which 
he may read or pass over, as leisure may permit, or devotion 'occasionally 
incline him: they are in name and order as follows, viz. The Iiitroit, Collect, 
Epistle OT Lesson, Gradual or Tract, Gospel, Offertory, Secret, Communion and 
PustcommunicHi. The proper prefaces, not being "so frequently subject to 
change, are placed in regular succession in the Ordinary. 

THE KEY OF PARADISE. 18 mo., plain hinding, 75 cts. 

The many editions which have been published of this highly valued Prayer 
Book, is a sufiicient proof of its merit: together with the usual devotions 
are given, the "Office" for each day in the week. 

GARDEN OF THE SOUL: or, a Manual of Spiritual Exer- 
cises and Instructions for Chiristians. 

18 mo., plain binding, 15 cfs. 

The pious, the venerable name of Challoxer. which stands on the title 
page of this Prayer Book, is alone sufficient to recommend it. Every exertion 
has been made to render this edition as perfect as possible. 

TRUE PIETY, OR THE DAY WELL SPENT: with engra- 
vings. 18 mo., plain hiiiding, 75 cts. 

The sacrifice of the Mass is the same in substance with that, which Christ 
soffered for us upon the Cross, because both the victim offered, and the priest or 
principal oferer is the same Jesus Christ, the difference being only in the form 
of the offering: upon the cross our Saviour offered himself in such a manner 
as really to shed his blood and die for us; wliereas now he does not really 
shed his blood nor die any more: therefore, this is called an unbloody sacri' 
fee, and that on the cross a bloody sacrifice. 

THE POOR MAN'S MANUAL. 

18 nio., plain hinding, 75 cts. 

This edition of a work long celebrated for the practical piety it inculcates, 
has been very carefully corrected. 

THE POCKET MANUAL. 32 mo. plain hinding, 25 cts. 

An useful assistant for those desirous to practice the duties of religion. In 
pKigeTwe find the following extract from the fourth council of Lateran, which 
ordains, "that every one of the faithful of both sexes, after they come to the 
years of discretion, shall, in private, faithfully confess all their sins, at least 
once a year, to their own pastor, and take care to fulfil, to the best of their 
power, the penance enjoined them: receiving reverently, at least at Easter, 
the sacrament of the Eucharist, unless, perhaps, by the counsel of their pastor, 
for some reasonable cause, they judge it proper to ab^tain from it for a time^ 
otherwise, let them be excluded from the church while living, and when they 
die, be deprived of Christian burial." 



Published by F, Lucas, Jr, 7 

THE PATH TO PARADISE, a selection of prayers and de- 
votions. Embellished with 5 beautiful engravings. 

48 mo., neatly hound, .37z cents. 

This neat little pocket volume, and it may be truly so called, has been 
compiled with great care. Independently of its convenient form, it will be 
found to combine a judicious selection of devotion, with beauty of execution 
and cheapness of price. 

HOHENLOE'S PRAYER BOOK, or the Christian praying in 
the spirit of the Catholic Church, by the Rev. Alexander Prince 
Hohenloe; translated from the German. 

18 mo., 'plain binding, 37 z cts. 

This edition of "Hohenloe's Prayer Book," is the only genuine one pub- 
lished in this country, as it contains nothing but what was published by him 
in Europe. Other prayer books, published under his name, contain additional 
matter that may be found in almost any of the Catholic Prayer Books in 
common use. 

Another edition v^ith the addition of Litanies, Rosary's, Nove- 
na's and Vespers. 18 mo., plain binding, 75 cts. 

THE PIOUS GUIDE. 18 mo , plain bindiiig, 75 cts. 

"Let a love for virtue, the desire of serving God according to the end of 
your creation, and of improving this short time for a blessed eternity, induce 
you to adopt the following regulations: 

1. Faithfully to discharge the duty of Morning and Evening Prayer. 

2. To dedicate some time to the practice of Mental Prayer. 

3. To assist at the adorable sacrifice of the Mass. 

4. Every day to rise early, in order to be able to perform the above, at least 
never to indulge in sloth, 

5. To have your fixed and regular hours to attend the duties of your state-, 
and usefully to fill up your time. 

6. Every day to give some time to spiritual reading-, if prevented, to supply 
it by the remembrance of pious lectures, instructions, and good sentiments. 

7. Never to go to bed without an examinationof your conscience." 

THE POOR MAN'S CATECHISM, OR THE CHRISTIAN 
DOCTRINE EXPLAINED. 12 mo. plain binding, 75 cts. 

In this volume, the reverend author has given a full and lucid view of the 
doctrines of the church, together with short,'but impressive instructions; such 
as the following; 

'■'■Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart, and with thy whole 
soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as 
thyself. Luke x. 27, Matt. xxii. These are the two great commandments, or 
precepts of charity; in these two we fulfil the law and the prophets; and the 
reward is life everlasting. To love God with all your heart, is to love him 
truly; to love him with all your soul, is to employ all the interior powers of 
your soul in his service; to love him with all your strength, is to serve him 
with your exterior power and actions; to love him with all your mind, is to 
fix your mind upon him in holy contemplation, and think there is none so 
amiable as he. With this love we must join a holy fear; love him as your 
Father, fear him as your God." 

CATECHISME ET PRIERES, ou ABREGE DE LA DOCTRINE 
CHRETIENNE. Precede de Texercice du Chretien, des prieres 
pour la Ste. Messe, la Confession et la Communion, et suivi d'in- 
Btructions familieres sur toutes les fetes de I'annee, des Vesprei du 

5* 



8 Standard Catholic Books 

Dimanche, &c. De litanies pieuses, et de plusieurs cantiques 
choisis, pour etre chantes avant et aprez le Catechisme. 

ISmo.. plain binding, 75 cts* 

LA DEVOTION DES CONFRERIES, ou RECUEIL DES 
PRATIQUES ET PRIERES. Propres aux principales Confe- 
ries approuvees par le St. Siege ; celles du St. Rosaire, du Sca- 
pulaire, de Notre Dame AuxiJiatrice ; celle du Sacre Coeur de 
Jesus, du St. Sacrement ; celle du St. esclavage de Marie ; celle 
de la Bonne Mort, &c. Reciieil utile a toutes les ames pieuses, mats 
surtout a ceux que sont membres dequelquhme des susdites Confreries, 

18 mo., plain binding, 75 cts. 

THE CATHOLIC CHRISTIAN INSTRUCTED, in the Sacra- 
ments, Sacrifice, Ceremonies and Observances of the Church.— 
By the Right Rev. Dr. Challoner. 12 mo., plain binding, 75 cts. 

The object the Right Rev. author of this work has in view, is, to explain 
the doctrine, and ceremonies of the Roman Catliolic CJiurchj to endeavour 
to remove the prejudice formed througli ignorance, of tlie real tenets of 
Catholics; and, to disabuse that portion of the public, who through misre- 
piesentation, may have formed erroneous opinions of a large portion of ths 
Christian world. 

FLEURY'S SHORT HISTORICAL CATECHISM, containing 
a summary of sacred history and the Christian doctrine. — Revised 
by the Right Rev. Bishop Cheverus. -18 mo. half bound, 25 cts. 

Although this work is chiefly intended for the instruction of youth, yet 
those in mature age will derive valuable information from a perusal of its 

pages. 

AN ABRIDGMENT OF THE CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE, 

by the Right Rev. Bishop Hay. 18 mo., half bound, 25 cts. 

^Bnoiher edition, 32 mo., half bound, 25 cts. 

This work is in the catechetical form, and is intended as a development of 
the smaller Catechisms. It would be difficult to mention a book in which the 
truths and precepts of religion are explained in a manner al once so sucainct 
and so satisfactory. 

A SHORT CATECHISM, for the use of the Catholic Church 

in the United States of America. Stitched, 6k cts. 

Another edition, 24 mo. stitched, 6i cts, 

NOTES ON A PROTESTANT CATECHISM, "shewing the 
principal errors of the Church of Rome." — By the author of 
Father Rowland. Stitched, 6i cts. 

This little work is replete with information; it elucidates the doctrine and 
usages of the Catholic Church, in a chaste and perspicuous style; it refutes tlie 
illiberal, and unfounded assertions of the author of the protet;tant tract, 
and triumphantly proves, that the Catholic Church is protected by Him, 
who has promised to be "with her all days, even to the consummation of 
the world." 

AN EXPOSITION OF THE DOCTRINE OF THE CATHO- 
LIC CHURCH, IN MATTERS OF CONTROVERSY. By th© 
Right Rev. James B. Bossuet, D. D. Bishop of Meaux. 

32 mo. neatly bound, 25 cH, 



Published by F, Lucas, Jr. 9 

"The exposition of our doctrine must produce very happy effects, as it will 
lead to the termination of many controversial disputes which have in several 
instances arisen from an ignorance of oar tenets." 

FATHER ROWLAND, a North American tale. 

18 mo. extrahoards, 50 cts. 

" Who would another fairly represent, must study well his character and 
manners." — Hor. 

"It is a matter of little consequence," to use the language of the editor of 
this interesting work, to whom the American public are indebted for 
the composition of it. From its character, and the various parts of which 
it is composed, we are induced to believe, that it is the oflspring of more than 
one pen. It combines at once, much theological research, a thorough know- 
ledge of the world, an acquaintance with men, and an ability of description 
almost approaching to poesy. ******* 
******** Passing, how- 

ever, over these conjectures, and confident that time will develop the author, 
we shall briefly review the matter treated under each chapter,. and conclude 
the present notice with one or two extracts. It strikes us, that the work wag 
written in answer to "Father Clement," although the name of that abusive 
little romance is not once mentioned, nor are Ihe misrepresentations with 
which it abounds, so much as even alluded to." — Metropolitan. 

"The doooriptinns which it f-ontains, are not, it is true, very numerous, nor 
are they georgeously painted in glowing colours; but we apprehend they will 
be found to be ti^ue to nature, and such we look upon to be the perfection of 
this species of writing." — Catholic Miscellany, 

THE INDIAN COTTAGE, A UNITARIAN STORY. 

"Son uomo, e di quest' uomo aDio non cale, 
Sou dio. Son Figlio, e non ho Dio, ne Padre." 

Loremo Migliacci. 

By the author of Father Rowland. 18 mo. extra uuarda, 50 cts. 

"The above work, by the author of "Father Rowland, was written in vin- 
dication of a Dogma, which is not only questioned, but systematically at- 
tacked, by a denomination who style themselves Christians. This too, is the 
most vital dogma of Christianity: for, if the founder ot the new covenant 
was a mere man, the system which he established, is not as sublime as that 
of the old. The reality is not more substantial than the figure. The pro- 
phecies have not been fulfilled. — Christ is no greater than the prophets, less 
than Moses. — This will be made manifest, it is thouglit, to any who will 
peruse this little work with attention, and without prejudice." 

A COMPARATIVE VIEW OF THE GROUNDS OF THE 
CATHOLIC AND PROTESTANT CHURCHES, by the Rev. 
John Fletcher, D. D. 12mo., plain binding, ^1. 

" The true religion is just as essentially one, as is the divinity itself. And 
exactly as a multiplicity of true (Jods is a contradiction, so, also, under the 
present order of things, is a multiplicity of true religions, — or eveh two true 
religions. Wherefore, it follows, — that, precisely as it is necessary for them 
to know, and to cultivate, that religion alone, which is the true one, — that 
religion alone, which, founded by the wisdom of our IvedtemeM-, is, alone, the 
rule of the Christian's faith, and the source of his sanctilication. 

If then, there exists any marks, bj^ which this divine establishment may be 
known, — any sure criterions, by which, in the midst of the surrounding asso- 
ciations, it may be accurately distin-zuished, — in this case it ought to appear, 
—as it certainly is, — a matter of the highest moment to be correctly acquaint- 
ed with them. Happily, there do exist sucli marks, — instituted by the eternal 
wisdom, for the express purpose of pointing out Ihe blessed sanctuary. Be- 
hold, therefore, the design, and plan, of the succeeding Treatise. Its object 
is to exhibit, and apply , these important rules. It is, to present to the hand of 



10 Standard Catholic Books 

the prudent man a clew, which, if he follow with pious care, will conduct 
him from amidst the mazes of error, to the asylum of real security. 1 have, 
liowever, adopted, for this end, one great principle in particular. It is 
a principle, admitted equally by the enlightened protestant, as it is by the 
catholic; and considered, not less the dictate of reason, than it is the sugges- 
tion of religion. It is a principle, too, so plain, and easy, that, in order to 
understand it, no other talent is required, but common sense; m order to apply 
it, no other disposition is necessary, but the honest feelings of sincerity. It 
is, hence, a principle, which has always conducted multitudes, and still con- 
ducts many, from the paths of error, back again to the paths of truth." 

AN AMICABLE DISCUSSION ON THE CHURCH OF EN- 
GLAND, and on the Reformation in general, by the Right Rev J. 
F. M. Trevern, D. D. Translated by the Rev. Wm. Richmond. 

2 vols. 12mo., red cloth backS) $1 75. 

" The Discussion Amicale, a translation of which is now respectfully pre- 
sented to the public, was first published in 1817, — a second edition appeared 
in 1824. — The more than ordinary excellence of this controversial work: 
has never been disputed either by friend or opponent; and its substantial 
merit, original style, and peculiar applicability, have for some years caused 
numerous highly respectable individuals to wish that it might appear in our 
own language. Latterly this wish has become more emphatically express- 
ed, inconsequence of the appearance uftht; ^' l>(j/iouUiv;> vf nomanism^''^ a 
work written by the great champion of Protestantism, the Kev. G. S. Faber, 
of Long-Newton, professing to be a fair exposure and complete refutation 
of the ^'Discussion Amicale.''^ As this book of Difficulties seemed calculated 
to give a very illusory idea of the general character of the volumes it at- 
tacked; as it evidently suppressed some of the most powerful arguments 
therein contained, and mutilated or distorted others; as it undeniably gave, 
in some instances, a false translation of very important passages, and on this 
false interpretation, raised no small proportion of its arguments; it was 
thought extremely desirable, that LUe Bisnup of Strasbourgh's original work 
should be fairly, and strictly translated, and thus appear in its own defence, 
and that the reader might be enabled to form a more correct estimate of 
its character and merit. The translator here begs leave to state, that he 
has followed his author tliroughout with timorous scrupulosity, perhaps 
with servility: and that, if he has erred, he has done so involuntarily, his 
only object in undertaking his arduous task having been, to aid the cause 
of truth, justice, and Religion." 

AN ANSWER TO THE REV. G. S. FABER'S DIFFICUL- 
TIES OF ROMANISM, by the Right Rev. J. M. Trevern, Bishop 
of Strasburg, late Bishop of Aire. Translated by the Rev. F. C. 
Husenbeth. 12 mo. cloth hacks, 75 cents. 

No one could better reply to the work, of Mr. Faber, than the Prelate 
agains; whose first work {Discussion Amicale,) "the Difiiculties of Romanism" 
were principally directed. The attack was made by a man, who, it is conce- 
ded, wields an able pen, and defends, with a peculiar appearance of ingenuous- 
ness, the cause of the protestant religion. But he defends a bad cause: and, 
consequently, is detected in the artifices to which he has recourse, to throw 
over his undertaking the veil of plausibility. 

THE DIFFICULTIES OF PROTESTANTISM, by the Rev. 
John Fletcher, D. D. 

"What is Protestantism? 

It is the abjuration of Popery." 

Dr. Burgess^ Catechism. 
"Nihil, enim interest illis, licet diversa tractantibus, dum ad unius veri- 
tatis expugnationem conspirent." Tertullian. 

1 voL 12 mo., 75 cts. 



Published by F, Lucas ^ Jr. 11 

Extract from the Dedication to the Rt. Rev, James Torke Bramston, D. D. 
Catholic Bishop of London. 
"The object of this work is to point out, as its title expresses, some of those 
innumerabie difliculties, which surround, and perplex, "the religion of Protes- 
tantism. To your lordship, a work of this description is addressed with 
peculiar propriety; because it was those very difficulties, which, first striking 
your good sense, whilst yet you were a Protestant, induced your prudence to 
view them with distrust, and ere long, to examine them with care. You 
did this, comparing them, at the same time, with the grounds, and character 
of the parent institute. I need not state what was the result. It was such 
as might be expected from a mind like yours, — frank, open and sincere, — 
wishing to see the truth, and willing to admit it. Convinced soon of the 
illusive pretensions of Protestantism, you quitted the established, and em- 
braced the Catholic Church. Sacrificing, by the generous act, those flattering 
prospects of wordly honors, to which, both from your talents, your rank, 
and reputation, (for, you were already a distinguished ornament in our 
temples of jurisprudence,) you were eminently entitled to aspire. Hence, 
therefore, the propriety of dedicating these pages to your lordship." 

THE END OF RELIGIOUS CONTROVERSY, in a friendly 
correspondence between a religious society o^ Prutestants and a 
Roman Catholic Divine, by the Rt^ l^ov. John Milner, D. D. V. 
A. F. S. A. 8 vo., plain binding, $1 25. 

The name of this celebrated polemic, so well known in the Christian world 
has been, if we may so express it, consecrated to the best interests of reli- 
gion, by the many valuable and important disputations, in which he was en- 
gaged : but in none, has his powerful and argumentative abilities been exert- 
ed with more success, than in his "End of Religious Controversy." 

"There can be no doubt, sir, but those who entertain doubts concerning the 
truth of their religion, in the course of their lives, must experience the same, 
with redoubled anxiety, at the approach of death. Accordingly there are, I 
believe, few of our Catholic priests, in an extensive ministry, who have not 
been frequently called in to receive dying Protestants into the Catholic church, 
while not a single instance of a Catholic wishing to die in any other commu- 
nion than his own, can be produced. O death, thou great enlightener! O 
truth-telling death, how powerful art thou, in confuting the blasphemies, and 
dissipating the prejudices of the enemies of God's church! — Taking it for 
granted, that you, dear sir, have not been without your doubts, and fears 
about the safety of the rOad in which you are walking to eternity, niore par- 
ticularly in the course of the present controversy, and being anxious, beyond 
expression, that you should be free from these, when you arrive at the brink 
of that vast ocean, I cannot do better than address you in the words of the 
great St. Augustine, to one in your situation: "If you think you have been 
sufficiently tossed about, and wish to see an end to your anxieties, follow the 
rule of Catholic discipline, which came down to us'through the apostles from 
Christ himself, and which, shall descend from us to the latest posterity. Yes, 
renounce the fatal and foolish presumption of fancying, that you can interpre 
the scripture better than the Catholic church, aided, as she is, by the tradition 
of all ages, and the Spirit of all truth,''^ 

A PAPIST REPRESENTED AND MISREPRESENTED, or 

a two fold character of Popery, by the late Rev. John Gother. 

18mo., plain binding, 37 1-2 cents. 

The re-publication of this little work cannot fail to be grateful to all Roman 
Catholics, who will find in it, the clearest exposition of their principal tenets; 
moreover, unprejudiced men of other denominations, cannot but be satisfied 
in finding means of rectifying their notions in religious matters ; and the most 
obstinate will at least be left without excuse, in shutting their eyes to the 
Bbining rays of truth. 



12 Standard Catholic Books 

THE FOLLOWING OF CHRIST, in four books, by Thomas 
A'Kempis, to which are added reflections at the end of each chap- 
ter, by the Abbe F. de la Menais — with an engraved frontispiece 
of Christ bearing the Cross. 2d ed, 18mo., -plain binding, 75 cents. 

It were superfluous to bestow commendations on the "Following of Christ." 
We shall merely mention that the notes of the Abbe dela Menais have been 
translated expressly for this edition. The enlightened reader cannot but be 
pleased to see, with what sentiments the perusal of this inestimable work in- 
spired a man not less venerated for his piety, than admired for his unrivalled 
eloquence. 

THE FOLLOWING OF CHRIST, in four books, by Thomas 
A. Kempis. Translated into English by the Rt, Rev. Richard 
Challoner, D. D, 1 vol, 32mo., 50 cts. 

"The imitation of Christ," says the celebrated Leibnitz, "is one of the most 
excellent treatises that have been composed. Happy is he who puts its con- 
tents into practice and is not satisfied with merely reading them." 

Of this inestimable volume, Fontainelle says, "that it is the most excellent 
book that ever came from the hand of man: the Holy Scriptures being of 
divine origin." 

THE SPIRITUAL COMBAT, to which is added the Peace of 
the Soul, and the Happiness of the Heart, which dies to itself in 
order to live to God. 24mo., plain binding, 50 cents, 

Another edition, 32mo., plain binding, 50 cents* 

This work is second only, to the "Following of Christ." It was the con- 
stant companion of St. Francis of Sales, and contributed not a little to nour- 
ish the tender, and enlightened devotion, by which that eminent saint was 
distinguished. The pious author of this treatise proves, that a spiritual life 
is founded on perfect self-denial, sincere sentiments of humility, and a difii- 
dence in ourselves on the one side ; and on the other, in an entire confidence 
in God, a profound sense of his goodness, love, and mercy towards us. The 
great St. Francis de Sales assures us, he read a portion of it every day for 
twenty years, and always with great advantage. 

THE DEVOUT COMMUNICANT, with engravings, by the 
Rev. P. Baker, O. S. F. 24mo. plain binding, 50 cents* 

The pious author of these meditations on the Holy Eucharist, has left us an 
admirable system for frequently, and fervently, approaching the adorable sa- 
crament. The first part is preparation before, the second, of praise and 
thanksgiving after, communion. 

THE SOUL UNITED TO JESUS IN THE ADORABLE SA- 
CRAMENT, or a Devout method of hearing Mass, before and 
after Communion. 32mo. plain binding, 37 1-2 cents. 

Of this admirable production that venerable champion of Catholicity, the 
Eight Rev. Dr. Milner thus writes— " I have been much edified by the affec- 
tions of a lively faith, and ardent devotion towards our Divine victim and 
food, in the adorable sacrifice and sacrament of the Blessed Eucharist." 

THINK WELL ON'T, or reflections on the great truths of the 
Christian Religion, for every day in the month, by the Right Rev. 
Dr. Challoner. 32mo., plain binding, 37 1-2 cents, 

"With desolation is the wliole earth laid desolate : 
Because there is no one who thinks in his heart." 

Jeremiah xii. II. 



Published by F. Lucas, Jr. 13 

lliesc reflections of that truly eminent divine, the Right Rev. Dr. Challo- 
Srer are admirably suited to persons of every denomination: the many thousands 
vof copies *vhich, from time to time have issued from the press, are a sufficient 
proof of the esteem in which they are held by all reflecting Christians. 
The following passage is from page 249, "It is consummated. Let us rejoice 
that the work of man's redemption is now perfected: that the figures and 
prophecies of the law are fulfilled ; that the hand writing which stood against 
us is cancelled by the blood of our Redeemer ; who, when expiring on the 
«ross, exclaimed *Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit 1' Let us 
iearn in life, and in death» to commit ourselves wholly to God: happy, O hap- 
py they who study well the lessons which their Divine Master teaches them 
iromthe chair of the cross." 

FIFTY REASONS why the Roman Catholic and Apostolic Re- 
ligion ought to be preferred to all the sects in Christendom. 

IQmo., plain Undingj 37 1-2 cents 

"Though for many years I employed all the study, pains, and diligence, I 
was able, in an enquiry after the true Religion, and sanctifying faith, which I 
was sensible could be but oNEv^"<i^h^siipon no other motive than a concern 
for my eternal welfare, and a desire to know the truthj I was yet in doubt, 
out of so many religions and confessions, which it was, that I ought to em- 
brace. In the mean while, upon this design, I visited several Universities j 
I turned over whole libraries; I read the works of innumerable authors (as 
well Catholic as others) that treated of our present controversies; I advised 
with a great many doctors, touching the diversity of sects and confessions; I 
proposed my doubts, not only to Catholics, but likewise to their adversaries. 
In a word, I tried all ways and means, without being able to find out the only 
thing I desired. This made me resolve to set all other business aside, and to 
■choose a proper time and place, wherein I might wholly apply myself to this 
affair, as being of all others, the most important; because nothing less than 
an eternity of happiness or misery depended on it." 

A NET FOR THE FISHERS OF MEN— the same which 
Christ gave to his Apostles, wherein the points controverted be- 
twixt Catholics and Sectarians are briefly exhibited; by way of di- 
lemma. Stitched, 6 1-4 cents. 

"And Jesus said unto them, come ye after me and I will make 
you become Fishers of Men." — Mark I. 17. 

"Those endowed with the 'private spirit,' either can, or cannot, interpret 
the Holy Scriptures:— if they cannot, why do they presume to explain the 
most difficult passages of that sublime volume? if they can, whence the ne- 
cessity of preachers, seeing no man will believe any thing, but what his 
S2)i7'it suggests ?" 

THE GROUNDS OF THE CATHOLIC DOCTRINE, con- 
tained in the profession of faith, published by Pope Pius IV. and 
now in use for the reception of converts into the Church; by Avay 
of question and answer. To which is added, reasons why a Ro- 
man Catholic cannot conform to the Protestant religion. 

32mo. sheep filleted, 25 cents. 

^'Because the Protestant religion can afford us no certainty in 
matters of faith.'''* 

THE MEDITATIONS OF ST. AUGUSTINE. 

\'dmo.,plainhinding, 50 cents. 

This celebrated Father of the Church, in this excellent work, thus invokes 

the Almighty: "Enable me, I beseech thee, O my God! through thy dearly 

beloved Son, to perform the works of kindness and mercy, to sympathize wirh 



14 Standard Catholic Books 

he afflicted, to advise such as err, to succour the wretched, to supply the 
Jieedy, to comfort the sorrowful, to relieve the oppressed, to cherish the 
poor, to sustain the dejected, to forgive them that trespass against me, to par- 
don them that wrong rae, to love them that hate me, to render good for evil^ 
to despise none, but to honour^all ; to imitate the eood, to avoid the bad, to 
embrace virtue, to reject vice ; to be patient in ad^/ersity, and moderate in 
prosperity, " to set a watch before my mouth, and a door round about my 
lips," (Ps. cxl.) to despise all earthly, and aspire to heavenly things." 

THE MANUAL OF ST. AUGUSTINE. 

18mo. 2)lcdn hindingj 37 1-2 cents* 

It is not necessary to dilate on the merits of this excellent work, the follow- 
ing passage occurs in the first chapter: 

"Thou, O Lord, fillest the heavens and the earth! thou sustainest the Hiii- 
verse, and yet feelest no burden; thou fillest all things, and art circumscribed 
by none. Thou art always in action, yet always in rest; seeking and gatherest, 
but wantest notiiing; lovest, without passion; art jealous, without vexation; 
repentest, without remorse; thou art angry, without emotion: alterest thy 
measures, but not thy designs; thou reeoverest, what thou hadst never lost; 
rejoicest in gain, and yet never poor; expectest thine own with usury, and 
yet never covetous; bountiful to them to whom thou owest nothing, and 
placing to their account, the virtues thou inspirest, that thou mayest become 
their debtor. 

Who hast any thing, which is not thine? Thou payest, and owest not; 
thou remittest thy dues, but without prejudice to the rights of thy divine 
justice. Thou art in every place, and in each entire-, thou canst be per- 
ceived, but not with human eyes; absent from none, yet far from the 
hearts of the wicked; but still not absent even from them; for where thou 
art not by thy grace, thou art present by thy justice. Though present ia 
every place, we can scarce find thee in any; we follow ihee, and yet thou 
remo'vest not: and what -we pursue we are not able to attain: for thou pos- 
sessest, fillest, comprehendest all, transcendest and sustainest all things, by 
thy mighty power. 

Thou teachest the hearts of the faithful withoutthe help or noise of words; 
thou art not extended with space, nor varied by time, nor nearer, or more 
distant by motion; but "inhabitest light inaccessible, which no man in this 
life, hath seen, nor can see." Always at rest in thj-self, and yet pervading 
the whole universe, and every part of it. As thy nature is really one, and 
uncompounded, it is indivisible: thou sustainest and fillest, illustratest, and 
possessest all things, and art every where all in all." 

SOLILOQUIES OF ST. AUGUSTINE. 

18?no. plain linding, 50 cents* 

This celebrated author thus addresses the Almighty, 

"Let me know thee, my God, O thou, who knowest me! Let me know thee ^ 
thou strength of my soul. Show me thy face, O thou my comforter: let me 
see thee, Otliou light of mine eyes. Come, O joy of my spirit, let me behold 
thee, O thou comfort of my he'art. Blake me love thee, O thou love of my 
soul. Appear to me, O my great delight, my sweet consolation, my Lord, 
my God, my life, and the glory of my soul. Let me find thee, O thou 
desire of my heart; let me possess thee, O love of my soul. "Let me em- 
brace thee, O heavenly spouse!" O thou, my sovereign, my external and 
internal joy. Let me possess thee, O eternal beatitude, let me possess thee 
in the very centre of my heart. O thou blessed life, and sovereign sweet- 
ness of my soul." 

THE LENTEN MONITOR, OR MORAL REFLECTIONS 
AND DEVOUT ASPIRATIONS ON THE GOSPEL, for each day 
from Ash- Wednesday to Easter Sunday, by the Rev. P. Baker. 

12 mo..) plain binding, $1.00 

"There are few books better adapted to Lent, than this excellent work of 
Baker's. In a style, at once pleasing and instructive, and with a piety whicU 



Published by Fielding Lucas ^ Jr. 15 

Irreathes in every page, he convej^s to the reader the substance and pith of 
those portions of the sacred gospels, selected by the wisdom of the church, 
for every day in lent. Most books of a spiritual nature are written in a style 
too dry and didactic to interest every class of readers: and, indeed, so general 
is this defect, that it is with difficulty that young persons can be persuaded to 
take up a book professeuiy religious. What we very much stand in need of 
in this country, are works of piety and motality, written in a manner which 
would please all, by the propriety and elegance of the composition. Did we 
possess such books, it would no longer be necessary, in order to acquire a 
style, to have reccmrse to productions, not merely profane, but frequently 
dangerous. What a delight is it not for the French reader to instruct himself 
not only in his religion, tout in the minutest principles of perfection, by the 
classic writings of a Fenelon, a Bossuet, a Massilon, a Bourdaloue, a Flechier, 
and so many others. In Italian, too, we may learn the most refined devotion 
in the most elegant style. Who has not heard of a Segneri, a Bartoli, a 
Pinnamonti, &c. &c.? There are, certainly, in the English language, several 
spiritual works of high standing-, such as Manning's moral entertainmei';ts, 
Parson's directory, Gother, &c.-, among these, the 'Monitor,' which is now 
under consideration, deserves not to hold the last place. The recommenda- 
tion of it, by the Archbishops of Ireland, will convince the reader, that this 
praise is not exaggerated or unmerited. *We highly approve,' write those 
respectable Prelates, 'of the publication of Baker's VVorks, and recommend 
them to the perusal of the faithful, as eminently calculated to convey to per- 
sons of every station, solid and practical information, and to awaken in every 
breast sentiments of pure devotion. The simplicity, perspicuity, and purity 
of style in which the divine truths are unfolded, admirably adapUhese reflec- 
tions to all capacities. The Pastor will find them useful in his closet, and at 
the altar; and the laity will learn from them to meditate with fruit on the 
life and passion of the Redeemer, and dispose themselves to rise Vv^ithChrisl; 
and seek the things tliat are above.' ''^—Jlleiropoliiaii^ 

THE OFFICE OF THE HOLY WEEK, according to the Ro- 
man Missal, and Breviary : in Latin and English. 

18?no., pZain ^Mxc^ino", ^1.00 

An attempt has been made to present this work under an improved form ; 
many inaccuracies have been corrected, the translation has been thoroughly 
revised, and the volume reduced to a more convenient size. 

The week preceding Easter has been designated '^Holy," from the religious 
duties and ceremonies which are performed during these days. It has been 
called Panosa, in allusion to the sufferings our Redtsemer endured for 
sin: It is styled Heh do mada Major, or the Great Week: as the Church then 
performs the great tilings which she had been commanded by Jesus Christ. 

THE METROPOLITAN. 1 vol, 8ro., in cloth hacks. 

This volume, which was issued in the form of a periodical, constitutes, of 
Itself, a very useful work. The original pieces are from the pens of Divines 
well versed m the subjects of which they treated ; and are presented in a 
style which cannot but please the man of taste and religion. The select 
pieces are trom approved authors, and forming a bodv of miscellaneous 
reading, highly valuable and instructive. The whole will be found to be a 
work which is far from ephemeral: and which every lover of truth and 
good reading should place in his library. 

A HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ENGLAND AND 
IRELAND, in a series of Letters, by William Cobbett. 

12mo. hoimdj 62 1-2 ceyits. 

"I have not been unmindful of the unpopularity and the prejudice that 
would attend this enterprise ; hut, when I considered the long, long triumph 
of calumny over the religion of those, to whom we owe all that we possess 
that IS great and renowned ; when I was convinced that I could do much to- 
wards the counteracting of that calumny 3 when duty so sacred bade me 



16 Standard Catholic Books. 

speak, it would have been baseness to hold my tongue, and baseness superla- 
tive would it have been, if, having the will as well as the power, I had been 
restrained by fear of the shafts of falsehood and of folly."— p. 322. 

ENGLAND'S REFORMATION, a poem in four cantos, by 
Thomas Ward. ISmo, plain binding, 87 1-2 cents. 

"Thrice is he armed whose cause is just, 
And he but naked, though wrap-t up in steel. 
Whose conscience with injustice is polluted." 

•'Atatirae like the present, when we would have thought that the foul 
(ougue of religious calumny had sunk into the bosom of eternal night, there 
would have been no further necessity for the appearance of this work, than 
barely to record its existence. But the misrepresentation which daily eman- 
ates from the pulpit and the press, for the express purpose of stigmatising an 
innocent and unoffending body of men, renders it indispensably necessary 
that we should wield the latter weapon in our own defence. It is neither 
usual nor consonant with the doctrines of our holy religion, for its ministers 
to occupy their time, or the patience of their hearers, in declaiming against 
the vices or virtues of persons holding tenets opposite to their own ; but 
when Protestants think proper to misrepresent the icliole body of our reli- 
gious community, the laity have an undoubted right to retort those asser- 
tions in the best possible manner. In this case, so far as we abide by truth, 
the justice of our cause will render abortive the wily machinations of our 
enemies. Preface. 

THE LIFE OF SAINT PATRICK, Apostle of Ireland; with a 
copious index and a chronological table, &c. &c. 

12mo. plain binding, 75 cents. 

"From the innumerable calumnies and gross misrepresentations of various 
ancient and modern authors, some, perhaps, influenced by mistaJien, but 
more by vicious views, in relation to the patron saint of the 'Emerald Isle ;' 
the editor has been induced to present this biography to the public, with the 
hope that thread-bare ^ci/oTi will now give place to autlienticity . Throughout 
the work, it has been his principal design to examine critically the sugges- 
tions ^ to unmask the sophistry, and to expose the bare faced calumny of several 
who have preceded him ; and then to present his readers with a perfect and 
authentic record of the life, the virtues, and the actions of the illustrious ST. 
PATRICK, with the best corroborative testimony of the truth of his de- 
tail." — Preface. 

A COLLECTION OF TRACTS on several subjects, connect- 
ed with the civil and religious principles of Catholics, by the 
Rev. J. Lingard, D. D. 

"The man who embraces a religious opinion from conviction, has undoubt- 
edly the right to maintain it by argument; but triith, wiW be his first and 
principal object; the champion of truth, will disdain the petty artifices of 
substituting assertion for proof, and misrepresentation for fact." 

CHRISTIANITY; or the evidences and character of the Chris- 
tian Religion, by the Right Rev. Bishop Poynter, V. A. L. 

\2mo. plain binding, 75 cents 

"Christianity is that form of religion, which was taught by Christ*. It embra 
ces the doctrines of that faith which Christ revealed : the supernatural moral 
precepts which he delivered : the sacred rites which he instituted: and the 
constitution which he founded for the government of his church. Christian- 
ity is the work of God ; a munificientwork in the establishment and support 
of which, he has displayed his power, his wisdom, his mercy and goodness, 
even in a stronger light, than in the creation and preservation of the world. 
Its end is the glory of God, and the renovation and eternal happiness of man. 



Published by F. Lucas, Jr. 17 

This treatise is presented to the public by its Reverend author with a hope 
that it may be of some service, in confirming the true believer m his adhesion 
to the faith of Christ, and in directing others to the knowledge of the truth 
ofCliristianity. 

SPIRITUAL RETREAT, for eight successive days : with me- 
ditations and considerations, for ecclesiastics, religious, and all 
devout Christians— from the French of Bourdaloue, a Father of 
the Society of Jesus. 18mo. plain binding, 75 cents. 

The plan of this "Retreat," is peculiarly adapted to the ecclesiastical and 
religious States :. but, it is also suited to Christians engaged in the world-, for 
the great truths of Christianity are always the same in substance, and they 
regard all states and conditions : the only difference being in the application 
of them 5 hence, each individual may with advantage apply them to his dispo- 
sition and situation in life. 

MRS. HERBERT AND THE VILLAGERS; or familiar con- 
versations on the principal duties of Christianity. 

2 vols, cloth hacks, gl.50. 

From this excellent work we make the following selection "Introduc- 
tory Chapter." 

Margaret. — I ask pardon, madam, for the liberty I take in waiting on you; 
but our little Peggy sent me word you had taken so much pains to teach her to 
read, since she lias been in her new place, that I made bold to return you my 
best thanks, as soon as f heard you were in the parisli. 

Mrs. Herbert.— I am glad to see you again, my good Margaret.- Little Peggy 
gives great satisfaction to her master and mistress; and is extremely desirous 
of being acquainted with her duty towards God, and towards them. Siie 
begged that I would present her duty to you, and her love to her brothers and 
sisters. 

Margaret. — Indeed, madam, she took a great liberty; but God bless her 
little soul! Peggy had always a good heart. As for what concerns her duty, 
to be sure she wanted to be instructed in that. We poor fo'ks in the country, 
madam, have not much time to talk to our children about it; and besides, few 
of us know how to read in books, like those that live in towns. As for my 
part, I never had any schooling at all; and besides, God help me! I have quite 
f^nough to do, to put bread into my children's mouths, without giving them 
learning. However, I always tell them to be honest, and to wrOng nobody. 
Upon that score, neither I, nor their father, (God rest his soul!) had ever any 
thing to reproach ourselves. 

Mrs. Herbert. — You are to be commended for recommending honesty to your 
children. To serve God sincerely, and to do to others as we would be done 
by, is the way to heaven, Margaret. 

'Margaret. — As for serving God, madam — 'tis you rich folks that can do 
that best. For us, who are obliged to work from morning till night — we have 
hardly time to say an "Our Father" twice a day, and to get to church on the 
Sunday. 

Mrs. Herbert. — You are quite mistaken, Margaret, in fancying that the rich 
can serve God more easily than the poor. I shall spend the summer in this 
place; and if you have a mind to come to my house for half an hour on 
Sundays, after prayers, and to bring any of your friends with you, — we will 
talk together concerning the means of serving God; and I trust you will be 
ronvinced, that you poor people may go to heaven as easily as ourselves. 
Good evening, Margaret. I shall expect you next Sunday. 

VISITS TO THE BLESSED SACRAMENT AND TO THE 
BLESSED VIRGIN, FOR EVERY DAY IN THE MONTH. 

Translated from the Italian of Liguori. 1 vol. Z'2mo., 50 cts. 

The work, a translation of which is here offered to tJie Catholic public, 
comes from the pen of a respectable prelate, renowned for his excellent 
treatises on theology, and his productions of piety, The name of "Liguori," 
particularly in the kingdom of iMaples, suffices for a book's eulogiuui. The 



18 Standard Catholic Books. 

writines of this author prove him to have heen possessed of an enlightened 
and solid mind, and, moreijver, exhibit the eifusions of a heart filled with 
that tender and ardent devotion, which breathes nothing but God alone. 
Such is, in a particular manner, the character of this little production, entitled 
Visits to the Blesszd Sacramext and to the Blessed Virgix. The senti- 
ments which it conveys, seems to flow from the abundance of a heart in- 
flamed with divine love. 

All those who are devoted to Jesus Christ, in the adorable Sacrament, will 
here meet with the aifectionate, yet simpJe, artless, and unstudied sentiment?, 
whicli they ought to express to their loving Saviour. Such as are excluded 
from the opporuiaity of oiiering their devotions to Jesus Christ in his temples, 
rnaymake use of this book at fheir homes. All classes of christians will find 
it of singular utility on the days on which they have the happiness of receiving 
Jesus Cur isi in the holy communion, and "also during the adorable sacrifice 
of the mass. 

The prayers to the blessed Virgin, w-hich succeed each visit to the holy sa- 
crament, and which the author designed to be recited before an altar dedicated 
10 her, are, for the most part, taken from the writings of the holy fathers, and 
contain just and solid sentiments of devotion to the mother of Jesus. 

The devout aspirations, which will be found at the conclusion of the visits 
to the blessed Sacrament and to the blessed ^ irgin, may be recited occasion- 
ally during mass. To render this lit^tle production stifl more complete, the 
author has subjoined a method of hearing mass, devotions for confession and 
communion, and meditations for every day in thelweek, on some of the most 
moving truths of religion. 

The translator knows no language more proper for concluding this prefara- 
tory notice to the reader, than by addressing him in the words of the pious 
author, which he begs leave to adopt as his own. "I entreat you, ray dear 
reader, not to slight this small work on account of the simplicity of its style. 
This smaplicity I have studied with the view of accommodating it to the 
devotion of all classes of persons. I earnestly entreat you, also, as often as 
you make use of this book, to recommend me. both during my life and after 
my death, to Jesus in the adorable sacrament. And I, on my part, engage, 
every time I celebrate the holy mysteries, to pray for those who do this favour 
for ine: and after my departure hence I hope to be saved, and to continue to 
pray for them in the world to come." Live Jesus and Mary. Amen. 

Ordo Divixi Officii recitande missaeque, celebrandae, 
juxta breviarium et missale Romanum ad usum Me- 
tropolitanas ecclesite totius que Diocesis Baltimoren- 
sis Pro Anno Domini, mdcccxxxii. Price 50 cts. 

The Ordo will be published annually, and ready for 
delivery on the first of October^ by F. LucaSj Jr. 
' 'if^All Orders for it must be post paid. 



Standard Catholic Books, 19 

. . F. lillCAS, Jr. 

HAS ON SALE THE FOLLOWING. 

THE HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

12 vols, Svo. cloth hacks, ^7; ^0. 

"In his (Dr. Lingard's) lucid and elegant pages, facts arc related as they, 
rcaZZy existed, and, instead of ti;e philos nphy otlliima^ he stores his notes 
with original and indubitable authorities." — Metropolitan^ p. 437. *. 

Whoever desires to acquire a thorough knowledge of the /acJ5 relating ta 
English history must ultimately have recourse to Dr. Lingard.=" — Edinlim-'g 
Review. .„ . . 

Examination of Evidence and Report, by the Right Rev. 
J. England, D. D. Bishop of Charleston, on the re- 
storation of Mrs. Ann Mattingly, of Washington. 

90^ jt>. stitched, 50 cts. 
Contrite and Humble Heart. 

ISmo. plain binding, 50 cts. 
New Testament, by way of Question and Answer, by 
the Rev. John Power. \^mo, plain binding, $1.00 
Baxter's Meditations for every day in the Year, 

V^mo, j)lain binding, $1.50 
The Sincere Christian, by the Rev. Bishop Hay. 

2 vols. V^mo. plain binding, $2.00 
The Pious Christian, by the same author. 

12mo, plain binding, $1.25 
Medulla Asceseos seu Exercitia, S. P. Ignatii de Loyola. 

12mo. $1.50 

Novum Testamentuni. 32mo. bound, 62J cts. 

do do 32mo. boards, 50 cts. 

Imitatione Christi. 32mo. fine ed. 75 cts, 

do do 32mo. common ed, 50 cts. 

Imitation de Jesus CI jst, par Gonnelieu. 

Fine ed, bound in calf, gilt edges, 4 engravings, $1.50 

do do do common ed, boards, 62J cts, 

Paroissien Complet 12mo. bound, $1.00 

do do 12mo. boards, .50 

do do 24mo. boards, .25 

Journee du Chretien, 24mo. fine edition, boards, .50 

do do 24mo. common do. bound, .50 

do do 32mo. common do, boards, .25 



30 Standard Catholic Books. 

Heures de Paroissiens, 24mo. bound, .37^ 

Visites au St Sacrement par Mgr. Alphonse de Liguori. 

1 voL bourds, .31^ 
Office de Peglise en francois. 

127«o. very large print, .75 
Meditations sur les evangiles. 2 vols. ISmo. $1-^5 

Manuel du jeune Seminariste. I87/10. .75 

Memoriale vitae Sacerdotalis. ISmo. bound, .75 

•L'Office de la Quinzaine de Paques. ISmo. .75 

Abrege de Phistoire Sainte. l2mo. .50 

Abrege de Phistoire de Pancien Testament. l*2?wo. .75 
Instruction sur Padoration du tres Saint Sacrement. 

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THE 



DIFFICULTIES 



ow 



PROTESTANTISM. 



THE 



DIFFICUI.TIES 



OF 



PROTESTANTISM. 



BY THE 

Rev. JOHN FLETCHER, D. D. 



" What is !brotestantism ?'' 

" It is the abjuration of Popery." 

Dr, Burgesses Catechism. 



" Nihil, enim, interest ilKs, licet diversa traetantibus, duns ad uniua veritatis ejcpug- 
nationem conspirent." TertuUian^ 



BALTIMORE: 

PUBLISHED BY F. LUCAS, JR. 

No. 133, Market-itreet. 






%p 



J. RobiMOQ, printer. 



DEDICATION. 



TO THE RIGHT RET. 

JAMES YORKE BRAMSTON, D. D. 

bishop oe xjsula, and vicar apostomc op the 
i.ondox district. 

My Lord, 

I have taken the liberty to dedicate the few follow- 
ing pages to your Lordship, They present, not a 
regular treatise upon the subject, which I have 
undertaken to discuss, but merely an imperfect etch- 
ing. They present, however, an etching, which, if 
viewed attentively, will be found to exhibit a variety 
striking attitudes, and important truths, — truths 
which, I conceive, are sufficiently awful to awaken 
the solicitude of the thoughtful, and more prudent, 
enemies of our religion, and to engage them to weigh 
well those principles upon which, — when consistent, 
— they build the fabric of their belief, and the pre- 
sumed security of their salvation. For the force, 
and excellence, of many of the observations, as well 
as for many portions of the work, I am indebted to 
the eloquent Essays of the celebrated Abbe De La 
Mennais. 

The object of the work is to point out, as its title 
expresses, some of those innumerable difficulties, 
which surround, and perplex, the religion of Protes- 



Vi DEDICATION. 

tantism. To your Lordship a work of this descrip- 
tion is addressed with peculiar propriety ; because 
it was those very diJBiculties, which, first striking 
your good sense, whilst yet you were a Protestant, 
induced your prudence to view them with distrust; 
and ere long, to examine them with care. You did 
this, — comparing them, at the same time, with the 
grounds, and character, of the parent institute. I 
need not state what was the result. It was such 
only as might be expected from a mind like yours, 
— frank, open, and sincere, — wishing to see the 
trutli, and willing to admit it. Convinced soon of 
the illusive pretensions of Protestantism, you quitted 
the Established, and embraced the Catholic, church, 
— sacrificing, by the generous act, those flattering 
prospects of worldly honours, to which, both from 
your talents, your rank, and reputation (for, you 
w^ere already a distinguished ornament in our 
temples of jurisprudence), you were eminently 
entitled to aspire. Hence, therefore, the propriety 
of dedicating these pages to your Lordship. 

It is not, however, upon this score alone, that I 
am induced to do so. I do so, moreover, by way 
of testifying my afiection for your person, my grati- 
tude for your favours, my veneration for your 
character, and my esteem for your many amiable 
virtues. 

Your Lordship's 

Obedient and faithful servant 

JOHN FLETCHER. 

J^orthampton, 
Feb. 2nd, 1829o 



CONTENTS. 



General state of religion, page IS. — Its causes, 
16. — Necessity of examination, \7. — Religion, its 
unity, 20, — ^Means to discover the true religion, 23# 
— Systems of the Protestants, 24. — Human reason, 
its character, and fruits, 27. — Feelings, their nature 
and effects, 36. — Inspiration, 49. — The Scriptures, 
44. — Authority, its necessity, 55. — Owned by 
Luther, and the Reformers, 72. — Inconsistencies of 
the Protestants, in relation to the authority of 
councils, 75, — The Bible alone the alleged religion 
of Protestants, 84. — Protestant restrictions, 89.— 
Late act of conciliation, 92.— Fundamentals, 95.— 
Socinians, &c. 99. — State of Protestantism, 118. — 
Incredulity, the natural effect of Protestant princi- 
ples, 121. — Repugnance of the Protestants to study 
the character of the Catholic religion, 132. — 
Features of the Catholic and Protestant religions, 
151. 

ILLUSTRATIONS. 

Effects of the Reformation, 163. — Controversy, 
172. — The principles of Protestantism, the source 
)f Socinianism, 175. — Dr. Burgess's definition of 



via CONTENTS* 

Protestantism, 178. — Difficulties, &c. of the Scrip- 
tures, 188. — The Bible Society, 197. — Protestant 
inconsistencies in relation to authority, £00. — Oaths 
of our legislators, &c. 205. — General state of Protes- 
tantism, 210. — lUiberality, 216.— Comparative vimi 
of the Protestant and Catholic religions, 222. — 
Authors, and founders, of the Church of England, 
229. 



THE DIFFICULTIES 

OF 

PROTESTANTISM* 



" All the religions, and all the sects, in the world, are built 
upon the dispute betwixt these two, — whether men are to go- 
vern themselves by their own private judgment, in their faith, 
and religion ; or to be determined by the authority of others.'' 
— Bishop Leslie, on Private Judgment, 



I. Whoever, with serious attention, contem- 
plates the scenes, which in this country, present 
themselves, every where, to his observation, cannot 
but be forcibly struck with the singularity of the 

* From the title, which I have thus prefixed to the following 
pages, the reader may, perhaps, be induced to suppose, that 
they have some reference to the late work of Mr. Stanley Fa- 
ber, which he has called " The Difficulties of Romanism,'^ 
However, such is not the case. The present work is neither 
designed as a reply to that illiberal,— and therefore, popular, — 
publication ; nor does my plan at all resemble that of the leajyi- 
ed Vicar of Stockton. He, in order to evince, as he pretends, 
the errors of " Romanism,^' has, with infinite industry, raked up 
and artfully linked together, every argument almost, and every 
objection, that either the learning, and distorted ingenuity, of 
his own talented, but strangely constructed mind could sug- 
gest ; or that the learning, and rancour, of three centuries of 
hostility, have unceasingly urged against our religion ; whilst 
I, in order to point out the errors of Protestantism, have select- 
2 



14 

spectacle. It is a spectacle, which is, almost alike, 
interesting to the curiosity of the philosopher, as it 
is important to the feelings of the Chrii^tian, He 
beholds a nation, which is distinguished for its sup- 
posed illumination, and good sense, divided, and torn 
in pieces, by the countless multitude of its sects. 
He sees an immense host of motley preachers, incul- 
cating ardently almost every possible form of doc- 
trine ; — the higher orders of society, the thoughtless 
victims of indifference, and incredulity ;- — the vulgar, 
the dupes of ignorance, and contemptible fanaticism ; 
whilst the little portion, which, alone, cultivates the 
truth with pious care, is almost imperceptible. In 
short, he sees, every where around him, a scene of 
error, and confusion ; of infidelity, and neglect. 
There is not a truth, but what is denied ; not a mys- 
tery, but what is contradicted ; not a principle, but 
what is contested ; not a duty, but what is violated, 
and called in question.^ 

ed, for this purpose, only one single consideration, — the ten- 
dency, and effects, of the leading" principle of the Reformation. 
From this point alone, I have undertaken to demonstrate, how 
groundless are the pretensions, of the Protestant churches to 
be^respected, as the divine institutions of the eternal wisdom. 
Let the candid reader judge, and decide. 

* •' The season of anarchy, and instability, appears to be gain- 
ing ground upon us with rapid strides : whilst men, despising 
all ecclesiastical subordination, and discipline ; all ' unity of 
mind, and judgment;* and esteeming themselves wiser than 
their teachers, adhere to such practices and opinions, as are 
right in their own eyes, or rather, such as are agreeable to their 
own inclination, and conceit,** ^Bishop Mant, Bampton Lec(* 



15 

Neither are these evils confined solely to religion. 
They extend to the civil order of things. Men now 
dispute about every thing,— about governments, 
laws, customs, and institutions of every kind. A 
spirit of revolution is actively working in the public 
mind ; and scattering, every where around, the seeds 
of licentiousness, and mischief. A cloud, — a dark, 
gloomy cloud, — which is daily thickening, hangs 
over the country ^ — and indeed, over half the states 
of Europe. There exist, in nearly all of them, as- 
sociations, whose chief aim is the subversion of the 
Christian church, and the destruction of the present 
order of civil governments^ associations, which are 
less formidable for their insolence, than they are for 
their secrecy ; and which are more terrific for their 
mysterious darkness, than if they were daringly ar- 
rayed in the field of battle.* I say nothing concern- 

^* There is quite enough of infidelity amongst us, already. 
Liberal principles, tliat is, no fixed principles whatsoever, are 
professed in every quarter. And in spite of the apparent tran- 
quillity, which reigns around, the day may not be distant, in 
which there will be as little belief amongst the gentlemen of 
England, as there is now amongst the philosophers of Germany, 
—that is. None at all." — British Critic, 

* " At the present moment, the earth does not rock under 
our feet, nor do the fires blaze around us. But, the furious element 
is still active, though it works unseen. The very ground, on 
which we tread, is mined. The materials are all combined and 
prepared; and the next hour may witness the explosion/' — 
British Critic, Such as these are the sentiments, and such 
also the frequent concessions, of many learned and thoughtful 
members of the Established Church. 



16 

ing the state of public morals. For these, it is un- 
happily too manifest, are awfully corrupted, and 
profane. 

To account for these calamities, is a subject, 
which, to tlie philosophic mind, requires little or no 
investigation. It is easy to account for them, at 
once, by the leading principle alone of the reformat 
tion. For, if men are taught to acknowledge no 
other arbiter of their belief, but their own private 
judgment I — if it be the imprescriptible right, — as 
by the rule of Protestantism it is, — of every indivi- 
dual to judge and decide, as his own reason bids 
him, — considering these circumstances, and the in- 
finite varieties of the human character, — there are 
no opinions, however false; no errors, how^ever per- 
nicious, but what are the obvious consequences of so 
wide, and so singular a privilege. Under its sanc- 
tion, every thing becomes personal, and individu- 
al. Every thing becomes right, which the judgment 
of each reasoner deems right. Thus, faith, opinion, 
feelings, assume as many different forms as there 
are differences of feature in the human mind, — that 
is, as there are differences of prejudices, passions, 
interests, talents, and dispositions. It is hence, 
therefore, that reason in labor has produced, and is 
daily producing, so many monsters; — so many 
errors in religion ; so much confusion in govern- 
ments ; such corruption in society : hence, that sects, 
and irreligion, and incredulity, go on, advancing 
with rapid strides ; — that the bands of social order 
become, every where more feeble ; that the tide of 
iniquity overflows the nation ; and that the spirit of 



17 

Christian piety is almost extinct amongst us. *^ M 
least nine-tenths of the peoplef^^ says Dr- Daubeny, 
*^are indifferent about the truth; and of the remain- 
ing tenths the much greater part ai^e iinqualijied to ex- 
amineJ^ [See Illustration, A.] 

Where such is, confessedly, the state of things, it 
ought, of course, to every thoughtful mind, to appear 
a matter of serious moment to pause over the awful 
circumstance ; and to weigh well the causes, which 
have given birth to so great an evil. In reality, 
there is no possible subject, which can deserve better 
the attention, both of the Christian, and of the phi- 
losopher.^ 

* " Of the importance of religious controversy," says the elo- 
quent, and animated Earl of Shrewsbury, — *^ I need say nothing. 
All, who believe in Revelation ; all, who value the morality of 
the Gospel ; all, who ground the hope of their salvation upon 
the doctrine of our Redeemer, must acknowledge the necessi- 
ty of a firm, a lively, and a *' steadfast'^ faith. This being the 
case ; and since it is the misfortune of Christendom to be ha- 
rassed, and divided, by such a variety of religious creeds, out 
of which we are bound to adopt one, as the only true one, the 
utility, and necessity, of polemic controversy appears to be in* 
contestably established. So long as there are 'false prophetS) 
and lying teachers, among the people i^ ~ so long as -we should al- 
-ways be ready to give an answer to every man, that asfceth us a 
reason of the hope that is iii us, tvith meekness ; — so long as it is 
necessary * to distinguish the spiritof truth from the spirit of er- 
ror*^ — so long, also, will religious controversy be necessary to 
furnish us with a knowledge of the points in dispute, and for 
the defence, and the confirmation, of our faith." 

Wise however as are these observations ; and manifest as is 
the obHgation of research, whenever the mind is, either in- 
volved in error, or under the impressions of well-founded 
2» 



18 

It is upon its wise solution, that depend the order 
of our duties ; the proper regulation of our lives ; 
the foundation of our hopes, and the prospects of 

doubt; yet, is it a fact, that the whole series of religious con- 
troversy upon the subject of the catholic religion, as it is con- 
ducted by our Protestant polemics, is alike inconsistent, as it is 
unjust, -calculated not to instruct, and piously direct, the in- 
quirer ; but to mislead him, and increase his prejudices. At 
all events, I can with great truth say this,— that having myself, 
read the works of a countless multitude of our antagonists, — 
having studied attentively their pretended expositions, and al- 
leged refutations, of our tenets,— I do not, amidst the whole 
herd, know even so much as one^ who is, — I do not say, liberal, 
— but merely candid,— or at least, if candid, —correct. '' The 
controversy," adds the same learned writer, whom I have just 
cited, " the controversy of the ministers of the Church of 
England, instead of displaying the meek spirit of Christianity, 
is full of rancour and malignity. Instead of calm, and sober 
search after truth, it is a violent exposition of atrocious ca- 
lumnies, and falsehoods, heaped upon us through three centu- 
ries of persecution. It is, in fine, no controversy atall.'* Such, 
certainly, as this is the general, if not the imiversal character 
of our Protestant antagonists upon the subject of the Catholic 
religion. For which reason, I will here, i?i limine ^ give the fol- 
lowing useful piece of advice to the Protestant reader. — Let 
him always, whenever he takes up a Protestant book, which 
treats on what he calls '^ Popery," — let him always mistrust it ; 
—let him say to himself,—" This book is replete with false- 
hoods : its leading quality is misrepresentation, — the effect, 
either of the want of candor, and of prejudice, which hates ca- 
tholicity; or of ignorance, which does not know it."— Such is the 
caution, which I suggest to every prudent Protestant reader. Its 
observance will be of the most important service, both to him- 
self and to us. It will secure him against deception,— against 
the misfortune, and the disgrace ** of being led," asThorndyke 
expresses it, " by the nose ;" and it will shield us against in- 



19 

future happiness. These are the objects, which 
ought to awaken the solicitude, and animate all the 
industry, of Christian piety. The time, each 
thoughtful mind must feel it,— the time is not far 
distant, when we must all appear before the divine 
tribunal, there to render an account *^ of that faith 
which is in us.^^ And what then will be the confu- 
sion of those imprudent individuals, who, interro- 
gated respecting the momentous obligation, will be 
reduced to the necessity of replying, that ^^they 
had never studied the important subject, — never 
given it, perhaps, so much as one serious thought.'* 
Far, then,— very far, — from every Christian mind 
this culpable neglect. Let each one study, what he 
ought to believe, in order that he may thus know, 
what he ought to practise. Let him build his faith, 
— and therefore also his hopes, upon a strong, and 
secure foundation. This is, indeed, the real sci- 
ence of immortal beings, — compared with wliich, all 
other sciences are but the objects of idle curiosity, 
or the amusements of luxurious indolence. [See Il- 
lustration, B.] 

suit, and injustice. " Indeed,'* observes the eloquent writers 
of the Monthly Review in the very last number (for Novem- 
ber), *' indeed the wonder would be if a Fellow of Oxford 
could make even the slightest allusion to the Catholic religion^ 
without caricaturing, and misrepresenting it, in the most ludic- 
rous manner." To do this, is in fact, a trade, — a passport for 
many a miserable production, — ^or, as Voltaire calls it, '* La 
fable convenue," amongst our Protestant writers, whenever 
there is question of describing ** Popery.'* 



20 

II. That there exists such an institution as Reli- 
gion, — this is a fact, which it would be needless to 
undertake to prove. The existence of this divine 
order of things is, amongst all the variety of unde- 
niable truths, the most palpable, and manifest. It 
is, alike, the instinct of nature; the dictate of rea- 
son ; and the strongest impulse of the human heart. 
It is the necessary effect, and expression, of those 
various relations, which arise from the attributes of 
God, and from the character and state of man. It 
is the link, which unites the creature to his Creator. 

And as it is manifest, that there exists such an 
institution as religion, so also it is just equally evi- 
dent, that the sacred object is necessarily but One. 
It is OnCf because the Divinity is One; — insomuch 
that, as no being can be God, which is not OnCf so 
neither can any religion be the true religion, if it 
be not, like the Godhead, characterised by its unity. 
Whence, also, as the unity of God distinguishes him 
from all false divinities, so in like manner does the 
unity of religion distinguish it from all false reli- 
gions. Religion is One^ because all truth is One. 
Whence again, even in the eye of reason itself, no 
religion can be deemed divine, which does not pos- 
sess this important characteristic. Accordingly, 
it is by this feature, that the true religion, — or the 
true church of Jesus Christ, — has always been, and 
will for ever be, distinguished: "one God; onz 
FAITH ; ONE Baptism.^^ It is unity, that forms the 
proof, and the heavenly stamp, of the true religion. 



21 

*^ Indeed 9^ says St. Austin, ^^ unity is the form of 
every thing that is beautiful; and^ of course^ it is, in 
particular, the form of truth; for truth is beauty by 
excellenceJ^^ 

III. The true religion is One. Therefore, the 
immediate inference, as I have just stated, is, — that 
save this One, — all other religions are false; and 
being such, are, of course, displeasing to the God 
of truth, and injurious to man's salvation. Being 
false, they are the institutions of human pride ; or 
the creatures of human weakness. Being false, 
they are, of course, opposed both to the attributes of 
God, and to the nature, and state, of man. They 
are, above all, repugnant to the divine veracity. 
And exactly as crime separates man from the 
source of purity, so also does the profession of 
falsehood separate him from the source of truth. 
Hence, therefore, it is, that we may remark those 
strong expressions of reprobation, with which our 
great Legislator condemns the sin of error. Hence, 
those awful anathemas, which he pronounces upon 

* " The religious principle, which emanates from God, must 
be uniform, and unchangeable." JDr. Graz/, Bampton Lect, 

" Unity is the very essence of Christianity." — Mr, TFix, Re- 
flections^ 

*^ The faith, of which Christ is the Author, and Finisher, is 
One, And no two descriptions of Christians, who hold opinions, 
on any article of faith, diametrically opposite to each other, 
can, both, be orthodox." — British Critic, 

*' Christ founded only One Church ; and there can be but 
One communion in it." — Dr, Daubeny, 



22 

all those, who resist, or reject, the authority of his 
church : — " He, that will not hear the church, let 
him be as the heathen, or the publican,^^ 

Wherefore, I will again remark, that, since all 
religions, save One, are false; and as such, unavail- 
ing to future happiness ; — since there is but One 
Church, established by the wisdom of God for the 
worship, and salvation, of his creatures, — and 
which, also, he commands them, under the pain of 
reprobation, to reverence, and obey ; — so, conse- 
quently, it should manifestly seem to follow, that, 
whosoever values his own soul, and reveres the 
mandate of his Redeemer, ought, of course, — if he 
be not already a member of the divine institution ; 
or if lie have not the 7vise conviction, that he enjoys 
this blessing, — to labour, with all his industry, to 
find it out. Here, his obligation is evident. Here, 
ignorance, — at least all wilful ignorance, — is fatal.^ 

* Consulting only the suggestions of common sense, Bayle 
writes as follows : " On rendra compte, un jour, de tout ce 
qu*on aura fait, en consequence des erreurs, qu'on aura prises 
pour les dogmes veritables. Et malheur, dans cette terrible 
journee, a ceux, qui se seront aveugles volontairement 1" 

Similar to this is the opinion of Rousseau, " Parmi," he 
says, «* tant de religions, qui se proscrivent, et s'excluent, mu- 
tuellement, ubte seule est la bonne," 

" As the church is but Oiie ; and the promises of God are 
made only to that church, so man's covenanted title to those 
promises must depend upon his being a member of it. Hence, 
it becomes a matter of importance with every man to be satis- 
fied, that he is really a member of it. For, should he not be 
such, the sincerity of his profession will not supply the defici* 



2S 

IV. The same evidences, which evince the unity, 
and necessity, of the true religion, evince likewise, 
and just equally, this other important fact,— that 
there must, consequently, exist some medium or 
other, by which the public may find it out,— some 
clear criterion, by which, amidst the multitude of 
institutions, which crowd society, men may, with 
real certitude, ascertain, where stands the immor- 
tal sanctuary. Indeed, no notion could possibly be, 
I will not say, more unjust, but even more prepos- 
terous, than to suppose, that the wisdom of God 
has established a religion, and commanded men, 
under pain of reprobation, to profess it, and that 
yet, he has not given them the means to trace it out. 
The great glory of a Being, who is infinitely good, 
is to manifest his goodness. Whence, to imagine, 
that he has imposed laws, and obligations, whose 
infraction is everlasting death,— and yet covered 
them with a dark, and almost impenetrable veil,— 

ency of those privileges, and blessings. ''—i)r. Bauheny, Guide 
to the Church. 

Thus, then, how manifestly wrong, and pernicious, is that 
prevailing, and fashionable opinion, that it is proper for men 
to follow the religion,— be this what it may,— which they may 
chance to have been born in ! In this case, the consequence 
would be, that it is, then, the duty of the far greater part of 
mankind to honour the divinity with a worship, which is at 
once false, preposterous, and profane,— that is to honour him 
with a worship, which He must reprobate, and abhor. 

" Inattention about the discovery of the truth is as real a mo- 
ral depravity, as is the neglect of religious practice.*'— JDr. 
Butler^ Analogy, 



24 

this would be insulting, — or rather, it would be 
blaspheming, — this darling attribute. In short, — 
to conceive, that he has placed millions of his crea- 
tures between truth and falsehood, — commanding 
them at the same time, with all the severity of his 
justice, to profess, and obey the truth, — to conceive 
this, and still suppose, that he has left them without 
the means of discerning it, — this is an idea, or pro- 
position, which is far worse than folly. Therefore, 
is the consequence manifest, that there do exist cer- 
tain mediums, by which the sacred object may be dis- 
covered; and not only this, but mediums clear, and 
accessible to every one, — mediums, analogous and 
proportioned, to the minds, and capacities of all, — 
of the simple, as well as of the enlightened; of the 
ignorant, as well as of the learned. The reason 
too of all this is plain : It is, because the true reli- 
gion is designed to be the rule, and conductor, of 
the former, just equally as it is the guide, and di- 
rector, of the latter. Whence, again, Rousseau, 
whom I have just cited in the preceding note, ob- 
serves. — following only the suggestions of his rea- 
son : *^ S'il etoit une religion sur la terre, hors de 
laquelle il n'y eut que peine eternelle, et qu'en 
quelque lieu du monde un seul mortel de bonne foi 
n'eut pas ete frappe de son evidence, le Dieu de 
cette religion seroit le plus inique, et le plus cruel, 
de tyrans.'^ 

V. Accordingly, this again, like the other propo- 
sitions, which I have thus far stated, is generally 



25 

admitted : and in conformity with such admission, 
there have been suggested, and adopted, a variety of 
ingenious measures, by which men have undertaken 
to seek the truth; and pretended that they had discov- 
ered the real seat of the Christian sanctuary. I 
will just cite, and rapidly discuss, those, which 
were adopted by the early Protestants ; and which, 
also, are still followed, and made use of, by the dif- 
ferent sects of the present day. The following are 
the principal ones, — to which, also, every other 
may immediately be referred : — First, the dictates 
of reason^ and 'private judgment; Secondly, tke sug- 
gestions of sentiment^ or feeling; Thirdly, the voice 
and insinuations of inspiration. These, assisted, at 
the same time, by the guidance of the sacred Scrip- 
tures, are the mediums, by which, it is contended 
by the Protestants, the truths of religion, and the 
seat of the true church, should be investigated ; and 
by which, they still farther maintain, the happy dis- 
covery may be made, not ouly with certitude, but 
even with very little difficulty. Wherefore, having 
thus stated the alleged expedients, I will proceed 
to examine, how far they are adapted to their im- 
portant, and pretended purposes. 

VI. When Luther, and his fellow reformers, de- 
tached themselves from the communion of the parent 
church, they were, of course, compelled, as the only 
justification of their rebellion, to deny the lawful- 
ness of her authority. '^The principles, they went 
upon" says Archdeacon Blackburn, " were such as 
these : Jesus Christ by his gospel has called all men 



£6 

unto liberty — the glorious liberty of the sons of 
God ; and restored them to the privilege of working 
out their salvation by their own understandings.'^ 
Accordingly, consonant to this '' glorious'' privilege, 
the language, which they addressed to their follow- 
ers, was this : " The authority, which the Church of 
Rome has usurped over the minds of the faithful, 
is a violation of the law^s of Christian liberty. Its 
pastors are just equally fallible, as you are. There- 
fore, it is your right, and your duty too, to judge 
for yourselves. It is, indeed, for this^ that your 
reason has been given to you. Therefore, read, ex- 
amine, and decide, as your own judgments prompt 
you." — Such was the language of the first reformers 
— as it is still also the language of every consistent 
Protestant. For, it is only thus, — only by the adop- 
tion of the above *' glorious liberty," — that it is pos- 
sible, with any thing like consistency, to pretend to 
vindicate the Protestant revolution.* 

*"The principle of the Reformation was not so much the 
right of separation from the errors of a corrupt church, as that 
Christian liberty, which gives every man a right to worship 
God according to his conscience.*' — Bishop Warburton. 

*' The Protestant church permits every iudividual, et sentire 
qute velit ; et quae sentiat^ loquij* — Bishop Watson. 

" The great, and important principle of the sufficient, and 
exclusive authority of the Scriptures, to be respected, as the 
unerring guide in all matters of faith, and religious instruction, 
was the leading star, which conducted our reformers to the 
discovery, and acknowledgment, of truth." — Dr, Gray, Bamp' 
ton Zj€ct, 



27 

It is, therefore, by the dictates of their reason^ it 
is thus contended, that men are to judge of the doc- 
trines, or divinity, of religion. It is true, indeed, 
that such opinion, to those who have not considered 
attentively the character of the human mind, may 
aj)i)car specious, if not satisfactory. For, reason^ 
there is no doubt, is the noblest attribute of human 
nature,— that grand, and sublime faculty, which ap- 
proximates us, in some degree, to the Divinity itself, 
— rendering us, more or less, the sharers, as it were, 
of his Being; the partakers of his wisdom; the par- 
ticipators in his truth. It is by it, that we are ex- 
alted, not only above those millions of worlds, which 
roll in the immensity of space, but above all those 
created beings, which, possessed of life and feeling, 
are not gifted with the talent of understanding. So 
that it is, indeed, with justice, that we entertain a 
very high opinion of the dignity, and exalted impor- 
tance, of human reason. 

However, all this admitted, — is it, after all, the 
fact, that reason, with all its magnificent preroga- 
tives, does really possess all those attributes, and 

^* Our incomparable Chillin.^worth, and some others, estab- 
lished for ever the old principle, that the Bible, and that only, 
interpreted by our best reason, is the religion of Protestants." 
— Bishop Hw'd, Study of Proph, 

"The Protestant acknowledges no universal head; nor 
deems the church itself, acting even by its legitimate rulers, to 
be either gifted with infallibility, or vested with such authority 
as may annul the right of its individual members to appeal to 
the Scripture itself." — Dr. Van Milderi^ Hampton Led, 



28 

rights, which the reformers, and the reformed 
churches, have been pleased to give it ? The reader, 
if he will reflect with candorf and attention, will, I 
am convinced, think. Not. Thus, for example, let 
him only consult, for a moment, the annals of expe^ 
rience. Let him, for instance, in the first place, look 
at the state of the pagan world, during the brightest 
periods of its learning, and supposed illumination. 
He sees at once the most monstrous errors ; the 
most corrupted maxims, and the most unsocial opin- 
ions, combined, and blended, with the few truths, 
which nature, and the necessity of things, compelled 
them to retain. Let him remark the disputes, the 
contradictions, the absurdities, of the schools of the 
philosophers. There is hardly a truth, which these 
men, though guided by their reason, did not deny,— 
a duty, which they did not disregard, — an obliga- 
tion, which they did despise. It was reason, they 
solemnly proclaimed, that induced them to believe 
in the divinity of a Jupiter, a Venus, a Bacchus, 
&c. It even sanctified vice, and deified corruption. 
In short, the whole history of human reason, during 
the most distinguished eras of pagan wisdom, is lit- 
tle else than the history of contradictions, absurdi- 
ties, and vice. Whence, that well-known saying of 
Cicero, "Nihil tam absurdum, quod non dicatur ab 
aliquo philosophorum." Such are the effects of rea- 
son, when it presumes to judge, and determine, for 
itself. 

In the next place, let us consider the character, 
and fruits, of human reason, as we see it exercised. 



29 

even at present, under the beams, and influences, of 
Christian knowledge. Alas, we find it, even here, 
a very imperfect guide to truth, and a very feeble 
barrier against incertitude. We find it, on the con- 
trary, made use of, every where, as the very princi- 
ple of error, and the basis of incredulity. We find 
it a torrent, which is furiously breaking down all 
the mounds, both of piety, and Christian wisdom. 
For, what is the truth, which reason does not deny? 
or what the falsehood, Vi hich it does not defend ? It 
is incessantly employed in combating every good, 
and in supporting every bad cause. There is not a 
nation, nor a place, in which men have have affect- 
ed, or affect, to take reason for their guide, but pre- 
sent to us the spectacle, not only of different, but of 
the most conflicting, and contradictory opinions. 
What one individual deems true, another, we re- 
mark, finds false. What this man looks upon as 
wise, his neighbour ridicules as nonsense. Indeed 
such, I conceive, is the character of human reason, 
that, let any two, and even well-instructed persons 
start from any one given point, — going on, reason- 
ing, and aiming at the self-same conclusion, — the 
consequence will be, that they will not have ad- 
vanced three steps, before they separate, and divide. 
In fact, I say too much, — for, let only the same per- 
son, taking his reason for his guide, attempt, under 
its direction, to pry into the nature, or secret, of any 
difficult, and important subject,— it will be found, 
that he will soon, and incessantly, differ from him- 
jself, alternately, and perhaps in the space of a few 
3» 



30 

days, adopting, and rejecting ; believing, and disbe- 
lieving, the very same opinion ; and this, too, with 
the very same degree of confidence, and conviction. 
The case is, that reason, with all its magnificent en- 
dowments, is a very feeble, fluctuating thing; — the 
easy dupe of passion, of prejudices, of interests, &c. 
It is dependant upon a thousand contingencies, ac- 
cidents, and circumstances, — upon the nature of or- 
ganization; upon health, climate, affections, love^ 
hatred, education, and so on. For, all, and each of 
these, give a bias to our judgments, and a colouring 
to our opinions. They are the sources of those end- 
less, countless, contradictions, difierences, and fluc- 
tuations, which we find so common, not only in the 
walks of society, but in the mind even of the self- 
same reasoning individual.^ 

* Both the ancient and modern schools, of what we call "Phi- 
losophy,** attest frequently the weakness, and imperfections, 
of human reason. Thus, for example, Plato says, " The pleni- 
tude of knowledge is found only in God. Man possesses merely 
a triaing- frag'ment of it.*' But, it is asked — " Could not man, 
then, with this trifling fragment, contemplate steadfastly, and 
£rmly seize, some truth or other ?" " No," replied Aristotle, 
*^ just as certain birds cannot bear the brilliancy of the sun, so 
neither can man's reason support, without being dazzled, the 
bright beams of truth." (Met. L. 2.) " Ihe only thing," says 
Pliny, "which is certain, is this, —that nothing is certain; and 
that nothing is more wretched, or more proud, than man. So- 
lum certum, nihil esse certi ; et homine nihil esse miserius, aut 
suberbius." 

" Human reason," says Bayle, " is too weak to conduct man 
to any certain knowledge of the truth. It is a principle of de- 
structi&n, not of edification. Its great property is to create in- 



31 

Trace, next, the effects, which reason has produc- 
ed in the minds, and on the conduct, of the menj who 
adopted its judgment, as the rule of their belief. No 
sooner had the reformers proclaimed what they call- 
ed the *^ glorious charter of Christian liberty,'^ than, 
straight every form of error sprang up under its 
captivating influence; and multitudes, — even many 
of the reformers themselves,— became infected with 
the poison of infidelity ; — insomuch that Melancthon, 
contemplating the awful scene, and considering the 
bearings of the licentious principle, exclaimed em- 
phatically, *^ Great God! what a tragedy have we 
not been preparing for posterity !''^ He tells us, 
that he traced its effects with horror, and trepida- 
tion; foretelling, at the same time, that no mounds, 
or barriers, would ever arrest the torrent of its de- 
certitude, and to turn about incessantly from right to left, in 
order to perpetuate doubts." fArt, Ma7iich.J " Every thing," 
says Voltaire, " within the circle of human things, and human 
sciences, only forms one empire of uncertainty, and doubt." 
CLeU d B*AlembertJ Whence, also, it is, that we find the 
schools of our philosophists doubting, contesting, or denying, 
every truth. 

* "In the catalogue of human errors, there is not, perhaps, 
one more glaringly absurd, than that, which substitutes the pri- 
vate judgment of every individual Christian for the authority of 
the church, in deciding religious controversies. It has no war- 
rant in Scripture :— it is opposed to the plainest maxims of rea- 
son, and to the legal institutions of every civilized society. It 
is, itself, the very essence of all division, and separation : and 
as far as it extends, produces the same disorganization in the 
church of God, as a revolution does in a commonwealth."— Dr. 
JSoylC) Reply to Ma^ee, 



32 

vaslations, (Ep. xiv. L. 4.) Ere long, appeared So- 
cinus ; when the virus of deism was found to circu- 
late through every vein of the reformation. It is 
true, many rigid theologians expressed very feeling- 
ly their reprobation of the distressing evil. They 
deplored it sincerely. But, then, the misfortune 
w^as, — there existed no remedy for its correction. 
The tree bore its fruits ; and though bad, and bitter, 
yet there were no means in Protestantism to hinder 
them from ripening. Thus, Germany, and Holland, 
became crowded with hosts of freethinkers. In 
France, Jurieu informs us, the Protestant ministers 
had long aimed at the destruction of Christianity 
itself: "lis formoient," he says, ^^ dans les eglises 
reformees de France ce malheureux parti, qui conju- 
roit contre le Christianisme.'' In this country, the 
case was perhaps equally deplorable. Indeed, it is 
a fact, that Voltaire, and the general body of our 
modern philosophists, very frequently acknowledge, 
that they have borrowed their chief doctrines of in- 
fidelity from the schools of Protestant England.^ 

♦ Voltaire frequently asserts, that the philosophy of the French 
was brought to them from England. ** It is true,'* he remarks, 
'• philosophy is greatly perfected in France ; but still we owe it 
to the English, who have taught us to reason boldly."— Ze/. d 
Mad, du Deffand, 

Madame De Stael makes nearly the same observations. " The 
abstract theory of impiety," she says, "was born in England, al- 
though the English are unwilling to admit its consequences. 
The French writers were not its discoverers : but they had the 
courage to make its application.'* — She elsewhere remarks, 
that " Locke's principles have been the chief cause of our 
modern infidelity." 



S3 

But, let us, too, once again, cast our eyes upon 
the general state of the Protestant churches, at the 
present period, — regulated, as they profess to be, by 
the genuine rule of the Reformation, — the pure dic- 
tates, and suggestions, of enlightened reason. Why, 
what a spectacle do they not, all of them, every 
where, exhibit, — what a scene of confusion, anar- 
chy, and disbelief! In this wise nation, for exam- 
ple, we possess above a hundred organised religions; 
whilst, perhaps, in each religion, no two individuals 
exactly believe alike. — In Germany, Baron Starke, 
Muller, and a multitude of other writers, inform us, 
there is not so much as one single Christian dogma, 
but what is publicly, and systematically, denied by 
the pastors of the Protestant churches.* In Gene- 
va, it is positively forbidden to speak in the pulpit, 
or in the schools, of the Divinity of Christ, or of the 
Trinity, and original sin:— which, in other words, 
is forbidding the defence of Christianity itself.f In 

* Protestantism is so degenerated, that little more than its 
mere name subsists, at the present day. At all events, it must 
be owned, that it has undergone so many changes, that, if 
Luther, and Melancthon, were to rise again, they would not 
know the church, which was the work of their industry. And 
this opinion of mine is conformable to that, which all those en. 
tertain, who are acquainted with the ancient doctrines of Pro- 
testantism, and with the actual state of its belief at the present 
day." — Starke, Entretiens, 

f Speaking of Geneva, Grenus, another Protestant, writes 
thus : "Les ministres de Geneve ont deja frunchi la boime im^ 
muable, lis ont donn6 la main aux Deistes, et aux ennemis de 
lafoi. lis rougissent dans leurs catechismes de faire mention 



Si 

France, the case is similar. There, with perhaps 
hardly an exception, the reformed pastors are ac- 
knowledgedly Socinians. — But, in short, no where,— 
in no one Protestant church. — is there so much as the 
slenderest shadow of Christian unity. No where, — 
in no part of Europe, — does there remain little more 
than a mere remnant of the original tenets of the 
first apostles of the Reformation. There is no where 
a minister, so unenlightened, or so hold, as now con- 
fidently to come forward, and preach the antiquated 
doctrines of a Luther, a Zuinglius, a Muncer, &c. 
It is their general boast, that better instructed now, 
and more liberal than formerly, they have cast away 
the absurd prejudices, and ignorances, of their early 
predecessors. Not, however, that these men are 
not equally real Protestants as were their predeces- 

da peche orig-inel, sans lequel I'incarnation du Verbe eternel 
n'est plus necessaire. lis attenuent tout ce qui, dans nos livres 
sacres, tient, ou du mystere, ou du miracle. On donne a cette 
conduite le nom de systeme liberal. Cela s'appelle marcher 
avec le siecle." — Correspondence, 

Thus, its present professor of theology attests, that " the 
Genevan confessions of faith have all died away, of illness, and 
old ag-e.'* — Idem. 

It is in consequence of these innovations, the same writer 
observes, that, whilst multitudes of the Genevans are sinking 
into infidelity, multitudes also are returning to the pale of the 
ancient church. " You delight,'* he says addressing the pas- 
tors of Geneva, -** you delight the Catholic clergy, who had 
long since foretold you, that the Reformation would lead to 
Deism. Certain it is, that these men have converted great 
numbers to Catholicity. And 1 know, that a still greater num- 
ber are on the point of re-entering that church."— /r/eni. 



35 

8ors, They are precisely as much so ; be their be- 
lief, or even their unbelief, what they may : because 
rrotestantisnif according to that accurate definition 
of Dr. Burgess with which I have ushered in this 
treatise, — consists simply in the abjuration of Fo- 
pert). [See Illustration, D ] 

Wherefore, contemplating the effects, w^hichthe 
alleged rights of reason every where produce ; — be- 
holding the errors, the confusion, and infidelity, 
which it generates, — it becomes difficult to imagine 
how such a principle can really have been instituted 
by the divine wisdom, to be the foundation of the 
Christian's faith. If, indeed, such is the fact, then 
also it is just equally certain, that the principle of re- 
ligion is, at the same time, the very principle of an- 
archy, and falsehood ; of doubt, and incredulity; — 
a proposition, surely, which is just as palpably ab- 
surd, as it is evidently false.* 

♦ What constitutes an av/ful circumstance in the erection of 
human reason into the tribunal of belief, is this,~that it thus 
becomes, not only the source of endless errors, but, moreover, 
their justification. For, if each one is the judge, and arbiter, 
of his own opinions,— if men are under no obligation of believ- 
ing any doctrines, save such as are satisfactory to their own 
understandings,— then, also, it is impossible, with any consis- 
tency, to condemn them, either for the rejection of any truths, 
which to them appear absurd ; or for the admission of any false- 
hoods, which, to their apprehensions, seem divine. The Pro- 
testant, who in either case, condemns them, violates his own 
principles. He may say, indeed, to one of these unfortunate 
beings, — "The truths, which you reject, are, in my eyes, quite 
manifest, and certain.'' The man, at once, replies, — '•Itmay, 



36 

VII. The next principle that is cited, as another 
means of ascertaining the truth ; and as the founda- 
tion of security, — is sentiment^ — that is, the feelings, 

no doubt, be so : and the thing is very possible. You, there- 
fore, do right to beHeve them. But, they do not appear so to 
me. To me, they appear, on the contrary, completely contra- 
dictory, and absurd: and as your reason says *'Yes," so mine 
says " No.'' Now, reason for reason, and conviction for convic- 
tion, why is not my reason, and my conviction, as good as yours ? 
But, at all events, if it be the fact,— as you allow it is, —that the 
judgment of each individual is the appointed guide, and arbi. 
ter, of his belief,— if this be so, why then allow me to follow 
mine, as you very properly think it right to follow yours." 

"Let us suppose," says an elegant writer, "the Lutheran, 
the Calvinist, and the Socinian, met together in serious consul- 
tation,— each, reasoning, and deducing his inferences, from the 
same favourite maxim. — " the glorious light of human reason." 
The Lutheran begins thus : " I see verjiclearly, and my best 
judgment sanctions my conviction, that the Bible is a work 
dictated by the Holy Ghost,— except, indeed, certain books, 
which my understanding forbids me to admit. In like manner, 
I see also with equal certitude, that Jesus Christ is really pre- 
sent in the Eucharist ;~not, however, as the Catholic is pleased 
to explain his presence ; but as I understand it, myself." — 
"How grossly," exclaims the Calvinist, "are you mistaken! 
for, I discover very plainly in the sacred volume,— and my 
reason, my feelings, my best convictions, confirm me in the 
opinion,— that Christ is not present at all in the Eucharist, 
either after the manner in which you explain the mystery, or in 
the way in which the Catholics understand it. I see manifestly, 
that he is not there in any way ; and that the bread and wine 
are neither more nor less than the bare figure of his body and 
blood."—" Well," replies the Socinian to both of these be- 
lievers, " you are, both of you, pitiful blunderers ;— both of you, 
alike unreasonable, and alike deceived. You, neither of you, 



37 

and convictions, of a mind, satisfied with the suppos- 
ed certitude of its own belief; and of the divinity of 
the sect, it follows. This too, is an argument, 
which, amongst multitudes of well-disposed individu- 
als, — the ardent, above all, the simple, and illiterate, 
is used incessantly ; and used always with an expres- 
sion of peculiar satisfaction, both as the proof, and 
confirmation, of their respective tenets, or religions, 
whatsoever these chance to be. However, the pre- 
tension is at least equally feeble as that which I 
have been discussing. For which reason, I shall 
devote very few observations to it. 

And what, then, are sentiments^ or feelings, in real- 
ity ? Why, they are any thing, or every thing, that 
you please. They are all the follies^ and infirmi- 
ties; all the dreams, and visions, of the hnman mind. 
They are assurances, devoid of any foundation ; — 
fears, the effect of melancholy ; and melancholy, the 
effect of bile. They are likings, the fruit of par- 
understand the Bible. For, I discover evidently by the dic- 
tates of my reason, and by the strongest suggestions of my feel- 
ings, not only that Christ is not present in the Eucharist, after 
any manner whatsoever, but even that there does not exist any 
revealed mystery whatsoever,— -neither Eucharist, nor Trinity, 
nor Incarnation ; and that Jesus Christ is at most a great, and 
important Prophet." 

Thus it is, that, adopting the rule of Protestantism and fol- 
lowing exactly its directions, men deduce from it the most op- 
posite, and contradictory conclusions ; making it serve,— as it 
equally does serve,— to sanction any error, or to set aside any 
truth. For, if men are allowed to judge as they please, tl^ey 
must also, of course, be allowed to believe as they please. 

4 



S8 

tiality ; and dislikiiigs, the creatures of prejudice. 
They are, in short, every possible shape of illu- 
sion, extravagance, and error. Insomuch that if 
feelings were to be admitted as the criterions of cer- 
titude, and right, there would, at once, be an end, 
both of truth and piety ; of order, morality, and vir- 
tue. For, it is a fact, which no one will controvert, 
that there is not a form of falsehood, and fanaticism ; 
not a practice of superstition, or of vice itself, but 
has been sanctioned, and even sanctified, under the 
plea, and pretext, of feeling. 

The circumstance, however, which, alone, suffices 
to prove, that feelings are not the medium, instituted 
by the divine wisdom, as the real criterions of what 
is true, and right, is the simple fact of that confusion 
of religions; that variety, and contradiction, of opi- 
nions which (hey have, every where, generated. A 
Being, such as our holy Legislator, and who is wis- 
dom itself, cannot possibly have been the author of a 
rule, which produces eflTects like these. And yet we 
find, that, however opposite any doctrines, or contra- 
dictory any religions, may chance to be, still do 
their respective advocates believe them, each, with 
the same stern conviction, and defend them with the 
same share of confidence. The case is, that the 
feelings of true, and false ; of right, and wrong, 
vary, every where, with the varieties of the human 
character ; and are dependent upon a thousand ad- 
ventitious circumstances,— upon education, habits, 
constitution, times> seasons, fashions, &c. There is 



39 

hardly a question, or opinion, but what strikes dif- 
ferent men in different ways ; nay, sometimes, even 
the very same man, upon different occasions, and at 
different seasons : insomuch that what seems true, 
to-day, will seem false, and absurd, to-morrow. 
Whence, also, it is a common, if not general case, 
that, whenever men go on consulting but the sugges- 
tions of their feelings, they are sure to proceed from 
error to error, and from illusion to illusion; until, by 
a very natural progress, they advance from error, 
and illusion, to incertitude, and doubt; — and thence, 
by an easy descent, to incredulity, or indifference. 
Indeed, whether it so chance, that men follow the 
impulse of their feelings, or the suggestions of their 
reason, they arrive, ere long, at one or other of these 
awful terms,— the most fatal boundaries of the hu- 
man intellect. Or if, indeed, certain minds do not 
reach the dreadful gulf, the happy circumstance is 
owing, not so much to their strength, and talents, as 
to the fortunate influences of their weakness, and 
timidity.'^ 

* There are, no doubt, a great multitude of Protestants, who, 
fortunately for themselves, as well as happily for society, do 
not duduce from their own leading maxim all the consequences 
which it contains. Containing in itself every possible form of 
error, that maxim, if followed with consistency, conducts to an 
abyss, which the pious Protestant contemplates with horror, 
and consternation. However, this is not the question. It is 
not so much to the conduct, as to the principles of the Protes- 
tants, that I now refer. Whence, I again assert, that, did the 
Protestant only follow up his own ruling principle, — pursuing 
it courageously through all its various bearings, and ramifica- 



40 



4 



VIII. Besides the two mediums, thus briefly stat- 
ed, I have cited a third, which its advocates are 
pleased to consider as, of all others, the best, and 
surest criterion of the true religion. This is the spi- 
rit of inspiration. But this, again, is a subject upon 
which I shall not dwell. For, to undertake to con- 
vince the sober-minded, and the enlightened, of the 
emptiness of such pretext, w^ould be superfluous ; 
and to attempt to undeceive the fanatic, and the en- 
thusiast, who are the dupes of its delusions, would be 
unavailing. To correct the errors of the under- 
standing is, in general, a very difficult task 5 but to 
reform, or remove, the errors of sentiment, when 
once they are exalted to fanaticism, is next to an 
impossibility. In this state, they form a mental fe- 
ver, which no remedy can reach, nor any restorative 
subdue. For in this state, men consider their feel- 
ings, not only as the dictates of wisdom ; but as the 
voice, and impulse, of the Holy Ghost, which, of 

tions, up to its ultimate conclusion, the general result would 
be,— as, indeed, we see it, for ever, verified, -^that either he 
would sink early into Socinianism,— rejecting" the revealed 
mysteries of religion ; or else, he would repose, in complete in- 
difference. His happy retention of any remnant, or mystery, 
of revelation, is a piece of inconsistency. At all events, the 
failh of the Protestant, who follows up his own i)rinciples, — if 
it must be called '* faith," and if he do retain any,— is simply 
an opinion^ suggested by the dictates of his own reason ; or an 
ideat or thought^ conformable to the feelings of his own likings, 
and partialities. 



41 

course, they deem it an act of irreverence to diso- 
bey.* 

The convictions of inspiration have been, at every 
period, common amongst the various sects, and 
members, of the reformation. They animated vast 
multitudes of its first adherents. They, once, in- 
flamed, and fired, half the population of this coun- 
try ; — as it is unfortunately too true, that they still 
continue to cheat an immense portion of its commu- 
nity. At the early part of the Reformation, the 
claim to inspiration was the great lever, by which 
the artful were wont to excite the passions of the 
violent, and to deceive the credulity of the simple. 
At present, and above all, in this nation, — it is 
the argument, by which multitudes defend doctrines 
the most preposterous, and profane. The idea is 
flattering to self-love, and to the imagination. For 

* " They say, that the Holy Ghost, if properly invoked, de- 
cides for each person upon all doubts. This opinion is not only 
absurd, but exceedingly impious. It supposes that the Holy 
Ghost abides outside that church, which he was sent to en- 
lighten, and direct : and that he diffuses his light, and grace, 
to men, who blaspheme, or venerate, as their judgment dic- 
tates, the same truth : That He, who is charity itself, dwells 
with heresy, which is impiety ; —That He, who is the uniting 
love of the Father and the Son, teaches the mort discordant 
opinions ; — That He, who is the God of peace and unity, war- 
rants, by his inspiration, strife and discord ;— That he taught, 
Calvin to condemn, what he instructed Luther to dogmatise ; 
and inspired Luther to curse, what he had taught Calvin, and 
Zuinglius, to preach ; — that he instructed Cranmer to adopt 
half a dozen formularies of faith, and Latimer to disregard both 
truth and duty."— Dr. Doyle^ Reply to Ma^ee, 
4* 



42 

which reason, it is easily impressed. And hence, 
in the history of Protestantism, that long series of 
excesses, extravagances, and follies, which are the 
disgrace, both of reason, and religion. We see 
even,— and this, too, very frequently, — vice itself 
inculcated as a virtue ; the grossest falsehoods bold- 
ly taught, and confidently believed, as essential 
truths ; and the most profane disorders committed, 
as acts of exalted piety.=^ 

* I might very easily cite a multitude of examples in proof 
of the above assertions. Thus, for instance, the Anabaptists 
solemnly proclaimed, that they had received a positive com- 
mand from God to put to death the wicked ; to confiscate their 
property ; and to establish a new kingdon, composed solely of 
the just. Their leader, and apostle, Bocker, asserted, that 
God had made him a present of Amsterdam, and of several 
other towns. He therefore, deputed some of his followers to 
go, and take possession of them. Accordingly, they attempted 
to do this ; — going about the streets, and presenting themselves 
before the public, in a state of absolute nakedness. —.Branc/^'* 
Hist. t. 1. Another of these men,— Herman,— urged on by the 
impulses of the Spirit, declared himself the Messias,— calling 
loudly upon the people to murder all priest, and magistrates. 
In like manner, we know the disorders, which, at different 
periods, have been committed in this cuuntry by the various 
classes of its inspired fanatics,— by its families of love ; by its 
fifth-monarchy men ; by its followers of George Fox the Qua- 
ker, &c. As detailed even by Wesley himself, by Fletcher, and 
Sir Richard Hill, what a mass of frightful errors, and of profane 
and impious principles, have there not been taught, and forci- 
bly inculcated, by a multitude of the preachers, and defenders, 
of Methodism. Some, nay many, of these, have taught, that 
sin, — eren the most dreadful sins of incest, adultery, fornica- 



43 

These effects are at once the evidence of the emp- 
tiness of the alleged pretension ; — which, in fact, is 
an insult to the wisdom, and perfections, of the Al- 
mighty. But without appealing to any such disor- 
ders, the circumstance alone of the incoherencies of 
the men, who have affected to be guided by it, is suf- 
iScient to point out its fallacy. The suggestions of 
the Holy Ghost are, of course, always uniform, and 
consistent; — as such also is the character of truth 
itself. Whereas, among the men that have laid 
claim to the heavenly favour, we find that every 
thing is replete with contradiction, and incongruity. 
Precisely as their fancies, or feelings, chanced to 
vary, just so, in like manner, do their doctrines. 
They had, each of them, their own sentiment and con- 
viction ; — each asserting with confidence, what the 
others, — w ith equal confidence, denied. So that re- 
ferring to the pretendedly inspired religions of these 
men, we discover, that not so much as any two of 
them do any where agree together. Thus, for exam- 
ple, we have recently seen our Wesley, and Whit- 
field, each arrogating to himself the sacred gift of in- 
spiration, and each delivering doctrines diametrical- 
ly opposite to one another. Whence, it follows, that 
the alleged claims to inspiration, are at best, but mere 
illusions; and that the strong convictions, under 
which the sacred privilege has been, and is still, so of- 

lion, &c.— so far from being injurious to salvation, are, on the 
contrary, useful, and advantageous. 

" I have frequently written, and spoken much, in my own 
spirit,*' says Wesley, " when I thought I was writing, and 
speaking, entirely by the assistance of the Spirit of God." 



44 

ten asserted, evince nothing more nor less than the 
enthusiam, the folly, or the weak credulity, of the men 
who have pretended to it. Conviction, — even the 
most powerful and invincible conviction, — has often 
animated the very worst, and most desperate, fana- 
tics. 

IX. To the aid of reason, and to the sanctions of 
sentiment and inspiration, the Protestant, it is true, 
calls in the aid of the sacred Scriptures ; — appealing 
constantly, and confidently, to their testimony ; and 
reposing his convictions upon their presumed autho- 
rity. This is, indeed, one of the chief, — if not the 
best, — stronghold of his defence. And it is because 
the Catholic does not exactly approve of this mode 
of deciding the truth, or the falsehood, of any doc- 
trine, that he is so severely condemned, as the enemy 
of the word of God. This is even a subject, which 
forms the great theme of those countless publications^ 
which are unceasingly issuing from the press, against 
Popery ; and above all, it is that which fires the zeal 
and animates the eloquence of our modern hosts of 
Bibliomaniacs. Wherefore, since both the imputa- 
tion and the question itself, are so important, I will, 
hence, pause, at some length, upon them. And first, 
I will state the opinion, which the Catholic enter- 
tains respecting the sacred volume; evincing, how 
groundless is the accusation of our supposed hostili- 
ty, either to the divine Book, or to its circulation. 

The fact, then, is, that the church of Rome, so far 
from being an enemy to the Bible, considers its pos- 
session as the most valuable of its treasures ; and so 



45 

far from being averse to its circulation, she, on the 
contrary, wishes to see it dispersed through every 
corner and cottage, of the Christian universe,— pro- 
vided only that its translations be correct; and that 
men read it, in the dispositions of humble, and pru- 
dent piety. We deem it a peculiarly fortunate and 
happy circumstance, that the Christian religion, — 
although, indeed, it was established without the aid 
of any w^ritten word, — should have its annals, and 
its written code of doctrines. It is well, that the 
faithful should posse ss the authentic registers of 
theirfaith, and the titles of their future expectations; 
well, that, amidst the trophies of error, and the 
monuments of incertitude, and incredulity, — truth 
should equally, — an d still more, — have its trophies 
and its monuments too. It is well, that, whilst 
books without end, and number, attest the thoughts 
of marif there should at least be one to attest the 
thoughts of God. 

But, the utility, and advantages, of the Scriptures 
are, still farther, rendered evident from the cosider- 
ationof the following circumstances,— that, precisely 
as tradition serves to explain, and determine, the 
sense of the sacred pages, so also do these same 
pages, in return, serve to prove the antiquity of tra- 
dition ; and to confirm, and strengthen, its authority. 
They show, that religion, its dogmas, and its duties, 
are, at all times, binding and irrevocable. They 
fix, or contribute to fix, the language, — and conse- 
quently, too, the stability, — of the public faith. 
Whilst moreover, it is true, that, without their 
aid, and testimony, a variety of facts, instructions, 



46 

&c., which help powerfully to move the heart, and 
to enlighten the understanding, would either, by 
this time, be unknown, or at all events, known but 
to few ; they present to us truths, the most sublime; 
and injunctions, the most important, — designed, for 
the regulation of the church ; the order of society ; 
and the conduct, and satisfaction, of individuals. 
Whence, St. Paul says : ** All scripture is given 
by inspiration of God ; and is profitable for doctrine, 
for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righ- 
teousness; in order that the man of God may be 
made peifect, and thoroughly furnished unto all 
good works/' Such are the Scriptures ; and such 
as these, the notions, which the Catholic entertains 
of their sanctity, their utility, and their benefits.; — 
revering them, as the most precious and important 
gift, that the wisdom and goodness of the Almighty 
has bestowed upon his creatures. 

"With all these advantages, then, — and seeing, that 
the sacred volumes have been lent to us for the 
above- cited purposes, — seeing this, is it not, for 
these reasons, but a piece of consistency to suppose, 
that the understandings of men, assisted, at the same 
time, by the instincts, and impulse, of their feelings, 
are competent, w ith these aids, to judge, and deter- 
mine, what, in religion, it is wise, and proper, to 
believe ; and what it is right, and prudent, to reject ? 
Such as this, no doubt, is the doctrine, — the neces- 
sary doctrine, — of every Protestant church, and of 
every consistent Protestant* All these, in the lan- 
guage of the ^* immortar^ Chillingworth, as he is 



47 

called, exultingly proclaim, ^' The Bible, the Bible, 
and only the Bible, is the religion of Protestants.''* 
And hence it is, that we hear the clergy, and the 
preachers, of each Protestant sect, so earnestly ex- 
horting their respective followers to read, and study, 
the divine Book unceasingly. " Read it,'' they call 
out; ^^ examine it: for it is the Book of Life* 
Learn from it ; for it will teach you, what it is pro- 
per for you to believe, and what it is right to prac- 
tise." As I have just remarked, all this is but a 
piece of consistency. f 

* " The Bible," says ChiUingworth, " is the religion of Pro- 
testants." And yet, mark, what this paragon of Protestant 
wisdom asserts else-where : " The books of Scripture are not 
the objects of our faith ; and a man may be saved, who should 
not believe them to be the word of God." Thus, by a very 
strange piece of theological logic, this oracle contends, that the 
13ible alone is the religion of Protestants ; and yet, that men 
may be saved without the Bible. 

The language of Tillotson is almost equally singular as is that 
l\ of Chillingworth : " We are not," he says, " infallibly certain, 
il that any book of Scripture is so ancient as it pretends to be ; 
iij or that it was written by the person whose name it bears ; nor 
^i that this is the sense of such and such passages in it. All this 
, may possibly be otherwise." 

f '* since Protestants utterly deny the infallibility of the 
church of Rome, as well as of councils, fathers, and tradi- 
,jtion, and do not pretend, themselves, to any infallible author- 
|ity ; what have they left for the foundation of their faith, but 
the infallible authority of the Scripture ? Therefore they, as 
well as Mr. Chillingworth, are reduced to the Bible ; and must 
cry out with him, «^ The Bible, the Bible only, is the religion 
of Protestants,"— Jtfajzeawa:, Life of Chillingioorth, 



48 

Since, then, it is thus contended, that it is the 
privilege, and duty, of men to interpret the sacred 
pages, ought not the direct consequence to be,— and 
is it not the dictate of common sense to suppose it, 
—that they should, therefore, be competent to un- 
derstand them ? Such consequence is, no doubt, pal- 
pable:— else, the reading, and examination, become 
nugatory, and unavailing. Well; and do they, 
then, understand,— or are they competent to explain, 
the mysterious volumes ? This is indeed a question, 
which requires no discussion whatever* They do 
not understand them. Even the learned themselves, 
left to their own talents, do not understand them. 
The truth is,— and it is the concession of the most 
enlightened scholars,— that, amongst all the varie- 
ty of books in the whole order of literature, there is 
not one single work, that is more obscure, more per- 
plexing, and difficult to be understood, than the sa- 
cred Scriptures, proof, this alone, that they never 
were designed by the eternal wisdom to be subjected 
to the interpretation of each private individual. 
^^ Open," says Dr. Balgui, '' Open your Bibles, 
take the first page that occurs in either Testament; 
and tell me, without disguise, is there nothing in it 
too hard for your understanding ? If you find all 
before you clear, and easy, you may thank God for 
giving you a privilege, which he has denied to many 
thousands of sincere believers.'' Accordingly, re- 
ferring to the opinions of even the most learned 
Protestants, we constantly find, that, whenever they 
pretend, or attempt, to interpret the holy pages by 



49 

the light of their own private reason^ and the dic- 
tates of their own feelings, they not only, all, differ 
amongst themselves, just equally as do the ignorant, 
and the simple, but they plunge, many of them, into 
errors, which are, sometimes, as pernicious as they 
are absurd. Their opinions are as various as their 
respective characters ; and as numerous almost, as 
their persons. Yes, and not only this, — but even 
the creeds, and symbols, of the reformed churches, 
— although composed by the wisdom, and policy, of 
the learned ; and reposing professedly upon the 
plainest texts of Scripture ; — and designed to cre- 
ate a something like unity amongst the public j— 
even these are, all, at variance with each other. So 
that, no where, amongst all the innumerable sects 
of Protestantism, do any two of these important, 
but singular instruments agree together. [See Il- 
lustration, E.] 

From these few reflections, therefore, — or rather, 
from the consideration of these facts, — it ought, I 
conceive, to appear but reasonable to the candid 
mind to conclude, that, divine, and useful, as are 
the Scriptures, yet, being also obscure, and difficult 
to be understood, they are not, for this reason, de- 
signed by the eternal wisdom to be subjected to 
the interpretations of men's private judgment. For, 
every where, and on every occasion, does experi- 
ence attest this fact, — that, let the talents, the learn- 
ing, the industry, and even the dispositions, of men 
be what they may, yet whensoever they have attempt- 
ed to interpret the sacred volume by the light of 



50 

their own reason, and to form their own opinions, 
respecting the doctrines of religion, by the sugges- 
tions of their own feelings, they have uniformly and 
constantly, not only differed widely amongst them- 
selves, but fallen, many of them, into the grossest 
errors and contradictions. But then, too, to contend, 
— as the consistent Protestant must contend,— that 
all men,^ — even the most illiterate, and simple ; men 
of every character, — the immoral, and the vain, just 
equally as the virtuous, and the humble ; — to con- 
tend, that all these should read, and explain, the 
awful volume, — this, surely, is a piece of absurdity, 
which no wisdom, — -save the w isdom of such men as 
Dr. Ryder, and our modern bibliomaniacs, can pre- 
tend to explain away.'^ Good God! to thrust the 

* If there existed no other reasons for withholding the Scrip- 
tures from the general use of the public, but the gross errors 
and corruptions with which the Protestant translations have al- 
ways, and every where, abounded,— this circumstance alone, 
abstracting from every other, is a sufficient justification of the 
Catholic church for having imposed certain restrictions, and 
regulations in their regard. For, the word of God, when ill, 
and falsely translated, is no longer the word of God, but the 
word of man, and the source of error. 

Now, the fact is undeniable,— and indeed, undenied,— that all 
the early translations of the Scriptures, which were undertaken, 
and published, either by the first reformers, or by any Protes- 
tant writers, were notoriously falsified, and corrupted. Thus, 
for example, speaking of the translation, which was given by 
Luther, Zuinglius says of it, " Thou corruptest, O Luther, the 
word of God. Thou art an open, and insolent perverter of 
the Scriptures. We, onee, indeed, esteemed thee, beyond, 
measure, but we now blush at thy profaneness." Such, too, as 



51 

divine Book, as these sages do, into the hands of the 
poor, and wild, and ignorant Irish, — or into those 
of the just equally ignorant English, — and bid all 

this,— not one jot better, — was the conduct of all the other 
pretended translators of the sacred volumes. Thus D'Israeli, 
describing" the character of our English Protestant translations, 
until the year 1660, says of them : " Our English Bibles were 
suffered to be so corrupted, that no books ever swarmed with 
such innumerable errata. These errata, unquestionably were, in 
great part voluntary omissions, interpolated passages, and mean- 
ings formed and forged, for certain purposes.'' It was hence, 
that, in an address, presented to James the First, the divines of 
Lincoln observes to him, '* Our translation is absurd, and sense - 
less, perverting, in many places, the meaning of tlie Holy Ghost." 
In like manner, if any learned reader will consult the modern 
versions of the sacred volumes, he will find, that, — although 
criticism, and biblical learning, have attained a degree of per- 
fection, which, until lately, they had not,— yet, are they still, 
exceedingly unfaithful, and incorrect. So, for example, the 
" British and Foreign Bible Society" have edited, as they 
boast, about eighty-nine new translations of the Scriptures. 
And yet, it is a fact, that, among the whole number, there is 
not so much as one, that is even tolerably accurate— not even 
the Irish, nor the Welsh. " With the exception,'' say the 
Quarterly Reviewers, ** of three or four individuals, not one of 
those, who have been employed under the auspices of the 
British and Foreign Bible Society, either in translating, or 
editing the Scriptures, has received the benefit of a regular, and 
learned education. Whence, their existing versions will be 
remembered hereafter, only for the errors, and blunders, which 
disfigure them." **It has even*'— they add— " been openly, 
and repeatedly asserted, that, among the foremost of the So- 
ciety's continental supporters, appear many individuals, notori- 
ous for entertaining heretical, or infidel opinions. Whence 
the persons in question have succeeded in making serious in- 






52 



these learn from it the genuine doctrines of reli- 
gion, — this is one of those acts of folly, for which 
it is only possible to account, either by the extrava- 
gancies of fanaticism, or the horror, and dread, of 
Popery. But, in short, I have no hesitation in 
saying this — that, if the reason of each private in- 
dividual be the interpreter of the Bible, — as by the 
essential rule of Protestantism it is ;— if it be thus, 
that men must find out the truth, and grope their 
way to the real sanctuary of religion, then also do 
I think it true, that the sacred Book (seeing, that it 
is so difficult, and obscure) is a very unhappy, and a 
very fatal present. For, in this case, men will for 
ever dispute ; for ever doubt ; for ever remain uncer- 
tain ; and unable to ascertain its genuine significa- 
tion. So that God will thus have spoken to us to 
very little purpose.* [See Illustration, F.] 

novations in the received versions." Need I, then, ask, whe- 
ther, under circumstances such as these, the Cathohc church 
does not act prudently, by imposing certain restrictions upon 
the faithful, in relation to the sacred volume ? 

* " Books," says Rousseau, consulting- the dictates of com- 
mon sense, " books are the sources of endless disputes. Hu- 
man language is not sufficiently clear. Were God himself to 
speak to us in our languages, still he would not speak so clear- 
ly, but that men would find out something or other to dispute 
3iho\xU**—Lettre a M. Beaumont. 

In like manner, the learned Maimonides, speaking of the 
Jewish rehgion, observes : '' It was a piece of wisdom, that the 
doctrines of our religion were not always committed to writing. 
By this means, were prevented those varieties of opinion, those 
perplexities and doubts, which were subsequently found t 
Qccur. For, perplexities, and doubts, are sure always to arise 



53 

Since, therefore, it is thus manifest, both from the 
dictates of common sense, and from the attestations 
of experience, that neither individual reason, nor 

out of writings, and books. These instruments become the 
subjects, and sources, of dissensions, and controversies ; of 
sects, and schisms : and in relation to business, they are ren- 
dered the causes of confusion: Hence, in my commentaries 
upon the Talmud, I have shown, — and the Law also itself at- 
tests the same, — that every thing was, anciently, determined by 
the judgment of the Sanhedrim."— JV/o re J^evocUm. 

" If," says Voltaire, " if there were not an authority to fix, 
and determine, the sense of the Bible, and the dogmas of reli- 
gion, the consequence would then be, that there would be as 
many sects, as there are individuals, who read the Bible." — 
Essai stir VHist. 

The Protestant, by the strangest mode of reasoning, main- 
tains that to be wise in religion, which, in every other case of 
importance, he condemns, as preposterous, and wrong. So, 
for example, let any human legislator compose a code of laws, 
and proclaim, and call out to his subjects, •' There, accept 
this. You are all, and each of you, free, and independent. 
You are each of you, the judges, and interpreters, of its signifi- 
cation. There is no one, who has any right to restrict your 
opinions, or to control your decisions. Therefore read, exa- 
mine, it ; and without appealing to any tribunals, judge ; and 
regulate amongst yourselves, the whole order of your con- 
duct, and your respective claims to justice, property, &c." — 
I need not say, that language such as this,~although it is but 
similar to that of every consistent Protestant theologion, would 
be considered, not only as a piece of folly, but as an invitation 
to anarchy, and revolution. 

In like mannei% let us imagine a set of men, pretending to 
instruct the public, in relation to their health ; and loudly call- 
ing out to them : ** Here is a treatise upon medicine. Whoso- 
ever wishes to enjoy health, and to live long, let him take this 
book and examine it with care ; no need of any physician to 
5» 



54 

feelings, nor the pretext of inspiration, nor the 
light and language of the Bible, as interpreted by 
the suggestions of private judgment, are competent, 
or suflScient, to conduct mankind to the sure know- 
ledge of the real doctrines of religion, — it should, 
of course, appear to follow, that, as the belief and 
profession of these divine truths are strictly enjoin- 
ed by their sacred Author, as the necessary condi- 
tions of future happiness, — so, consequently, there 
ought to exist, — and therefore does exist, — some 
other principle, besides the above, by which this 
blessing may be attained ; — and a principle, more- 
over, by means of which, the possession of the true 
religion may be ascertained, with such a degree of 
certitude, and security, as to leave no room for ra- 
tional doubt upon the mind of the sincere inquirer. 
In reality, there is no kind of certitude, and con- 
viction, that should be so strong, and so completely 
devoid of doubt, as the certitude, and conviction of 
Christian faithe In religion, all doubt is not only 
wrong, but criminal. The want of a solid basis to 
sustain belief must, of course, produce error, scep- 
ticism, and indifference. It is only a fixed, and 
sure criterion, that can create wise stability, or in- 
spire rational conviction. 

direct you. Your own feelings, and your own good sense, are, 
alone, sufficient to do thisu It is true, the book contains many 
difficult, and unintelligible things. Still, if you wish to live, 
you must read it. and adopt it, as the only guide, and security, 
of your health."— Good sense feels at once the nonsense of lan- 
guage such as this. 



55 

X. And what, therefore (I come now to ask the 
important question), is that liappy principle, by 
means of which these invaluable blessings may be 
obtained? Why, if the various mediums, which I 
have thus far discussed, be inadequate to this pur- 
pose, — then is the reply at once obvious, and in- 
contestable. For, in this case, there remains but 
one medium more, by whose aid the attainment of 
the above benefits can be reasonably accounted for. 
This medium is Authority ; — but, an authority, of 
course unerring, and infallible; — an authority, in- 
stituted by the wiisdom of our supreme legisla- 
tor; — designed by his mercy to be the guide, and 
instructor, of his subjects ; and so established, as 
to preserve inviolate, till the end of time, the 
sacred depositum of his revelations. In religion, 
the means ought manifestly to correspond to the 
end. So that if the unity, anl perpetuity, of the 
true faith be the necessary appendages of the sa- 
cred institute, then must there also coexist some 
means or other, corresponding to these benefits, by 
which they may be effectually attained, and secured. 
This means, as I have just said, — is no other than 
Authority,^ 

* '* There can be no peace in any community, no order pre- 
served in any church or state, unless there be tribunals estab- 
lished, to which existing" differences may be referred for deci- 
sion : and if those differences relate to the truths which com- 
pose the Christian religion, it is quite impossible to put an end 
to them, or to quiet the minds of the disputants, unless the deci- 
sion be exempt from error. Faith is not faith, if the believers 



56 

XI. That our great Legislator promulgated, and 
established, the doctrines, and the law, of truth, — 
this is a point, which, just equally with the Catholic, 
every Christian sect very readily admits^ He did 
this, in the effusions of his mercy towards his crea- 
tures. However, merely to have done this was by 
no means enough. It was still requisite, that he 
should also provide for the preservation of tliose 
benefits; because they are designed to be, not tem- 
porary, but perpetual, and immortal institutions, 

hesitate in doubt :— for he who doubts, is already an unbeliever. 
It, therefore, obviously, and necessarily follows, that, if God wil- 
led, that we should believe what he has revealed, he should either 
reveal his will so clearly, as that no doubt should arise with re- 
gard to its meaning, — which he has not done ; or else, he should 
only require of us to adopt such meaning of it, as appeared to 
us the must probable,— a supposition, incompatible with the 
nature of faith ; — or lastly, he should give us a tribunal, author- 
ised to decide, so as not only to put an end to disputes, and 
preserve order in the church, hut which, also, by its decision, 
would exclude all doubt: -iv/iereas doubt cannot coexist -with 
faith. The existence, therefore, of an infallible authority in the 
church is not a matter of secondary import ; or one, on which 
different opinions may be entertained : it is so necessary, that, 
without it, (revelation being such as it is,) the church could 
not exist; nor faith continue, on the earth. Without this au- 
thority, the Christian religion, from its very commencement? 
would have degenerated into a system of human philosophy ; 
and private opinion would have taken the place of divine faith 
in the minds of men. This is, indeed, the result of the rejec- 
tion of church authority, throughout the Protestant churches 
of France, Switzerland, Germany, Sweden, and Denmark.**— 
J}r, Doijle, Reply to Magee, 



57 

It was necessary even, beyond this, to secure their 
preservation against all the profane mixtures of 
error, and the impure alloys of human corrup- 
tion : —because they are intended to remain always, 
such precisely as they were originally, — as pure, 
holy, and uncontaminated, as when they came forth 
from the bosom of the Divinity. This, too, is ob- 
vious : and such as this, accordingly, is the order 
of things instituted by our great Legislator. He 
has even done this, in a way, which strikingly at- 
tests his own eternal wisdom ; points out that know- 
ledge of the human character, which can only be- 
long to an infinite Being; and expresses, at the same 
time, that property of unity, which is the distinc- 
tive attribute of the works of the Almighty. 

But how, then, and by what means, has he effect- 
ed this ? Has he done it, by committing his divine 
doctrines to the pages of a book ; — affixing to it 
proofs, so peculiarly manifest, and arguments, so 
palpable, that the human mind cannot easily either 
reject, or misunderstand them ? Such as this, no 
doubt, in the formation of a code of laws, would 
be the plan, and endeavour, of the political legisla- 
tor, or of the human philosopher. However, who 
but must feel at once, that, considering the pride, 
and passions, the self-love, and the weaknesses, of 
the minds of men, — to have acted thus, would have 
been opening a field, — a vast, boundless field, — to 
endless difficulties, to strife, contention, and disu- 
nity ? Who but must be sensible that, by thus flat- 



58 

tering, and addressing, the reason of the public,— 
authorising them to believe only what they clearly 
understood,— would have been, in reality, to have 
erected an insurmountable barrier, between man, 
and an incomprehensible Being ? It is, consequent- 
ly, hence, that the great Legislator, disdaining all 
the feeble and vain supports of human opinions, de- 
scends at once, and penetrates, into the very foun- 
dations of our nature, and constitution ; and it is 
there, that he lays, and fixes, the grounds of the 
unity, and perpetuity, of his law. He maintains 
and preserves his divine truths in tlie thoughts of 
men, precisely as he maintains and preserves 
thought itself,— by the transmission of his sacred 
word,— preparing, at the same time, for the securi- 
ty of this transmission, by the institution of a me- 
dium, which is inviolable, and holy. That is, m 
other words, he has formed, and established, on 
earth, a regular society, under the control of a re- 
gular government, of which himself is the corner- 
stone. He has united together by certain exterior, 
and indissoluble links, that happy portion of man- 
kind, who constitute its members; again uniting 
them, moreover, interiorly, by the principles of 
the same belief. Such as this is the character af the 
real church of Jesus Christ. 

XII. The principle, as the reader knows, upon 
which our divine Legislator himself undertook the 
office of teaching, and conducting mankind, was the 
deputation, which he had received^, for these purpo- 
ses, from the sanction of his eternal Father : for, as 



59 

St. Paul remarks, " Christ glorified not himself to 
be made a high-priest." It was solely in virtue of 
this charter, as himself declared, that he inculcated 

his sacred doctrines, and imposed his precepts 

Wherefore, being thus deputed, and commissioned, 
this divine Being, in his turn, deputes, in like man- 
ner, and commissions, a new order of pastors, to 
wliom, also, he transfers that self-same charter, 
which himself had received from the hands of his 
heavenly Father. "As the Father," he said, ad- 
dressing his apostles, and through them, their suc- 
cessors to the end of time,—" As the Father hath 
sent me, even so do I send you." " Go, therefore, 
and teach all nations j and behold I am with you, 
all days, to the end of the world." Hence, exactly 
as Christ Jesus has said, speaking of himself,— 
"He, who hath sent me, is true; and I say again 
to the world those things which I have heard from 
him,"— so also, speaking of themselves, do these 
pastors, thus authorised, for ever, and at present, 
say,— "He, who hath sent us, is true,- and we say 
again to the world those things, which we have 
heard from him." Mere witnesses of the divine 
word, these men but simply testify what they have 
heard from their Master; so that their testimony is 
no other than that of Jesus Christ himself,- precise- 
ly as the testimony of this sacred Being is but that 
of his eternal Father, who had sent him, and said 
of bim, "This is my beloved Son; hear you him." 
tt was accordingly for these reasons, that this di- 
"ne Personage, addressing his apostles, says to 



60 

them, "He that heareth you, heareth me; and he 
that despiseth you, despiseth me ; and he that despi- 
seth me, despiseth him that sent me.'' Wherefore, 
this consequence ought to appear undeniable, — that, 
in order to enter into society with God, — or as the 
Scripture expresses it, "in order to become the 
children of God," — the necessary medium is, to re- 
ceive his doctrines from his church, as his church 
had received them from Christ, and as Christ him- 
self had received them from the hands of hislieaven- 
ly Father ; — and to receive them, at the same time, 
with the convictions of a firm, and unhesitating 
faith ; not only because such is the sole means of 
possessing the truth, but because all doubt, — even 
the slenderest doubt, — is an insult to the supreme 
authority, which has revealed it. If, indeed, these 
principles be once set aside, and the mere aid of i 
reason called in to determine what are the real dog- 
mas of revelation, — what it is necessary to believe, 
or proper to reject, — in such case, there must soon 
be an end of truth, and of all prudent, and fixed 
convictions. Transposed, and placed upon so weak 
and contemptible a basis, the sacred fabric of reli- 
gion sinks, ere long, an awful and distressing ru- 
in; — overwhelming in its fall, and under the weight 
of its fragments, that presumptuous principle, — hu- 
man reason, — which flattered, and deceived, by the 
suggestions of its own pride, has vainly considered 
itself as strong enough to sustain the whole pressure 
of the immortal sanctuary. 



61 

XIII. It is, therefore, owing to the nature of di- 
vine faith ; to the character in particular of its uni- 
ty ;siud to the obligation of believing, and profes- 
sing it, such precisely as it comes from the bosom of 
the Divinity, that, at every period of time, — under 
all the dispensations of God's mercy to his crea- 
tures, — there has always existed on earth a visible 
and speaking guide, — a guide, not only commission- 
ed to instruct the public how to believe, and to act j 
but invested, moreover, with the authority, both to 
command, and to enforce <«)bedience. In reality, if 
faith be essentially one^ and at the same time un- 
changeable, as well as necessary, then is such medi- 
um manifestly requisite. Because it is only thus, 
that it can be conceived, — 1 do not say, easy, — but 
even possible, to prevent, or suppress, contentions ; 
to remove doubts; to inspire confidence; and to 
maintain security, and wise conviction. Faith, with- 
out the principle of authority, leans only upon a 
reed. For this reason, therefore, it was, that even 
our divine Legislator, before he took upon iiimself, 
either to teach, or to command, establislied first, 
and rendered incontesiaole, the reality of his own 
authority to do so. He did this, by the attestation, 
and splendor, of his miracles. He performed mira- 
des ; thus proving his right to conduct the public; 
— and then only, he said to them, ** Believe." It was 
so, too, with his apostles. They, too, in like man- 
ner, — ere they came forward to guide, and instruct 
mankind, — demonstrated, in the first place, their 
power to do so, by the blaze of miracles ; and tlien 



62 

it was, that, like their great Master, they, too, call- 
ed out, ^^ Believe.'' In fact, authority is the sole 
foundation of Christian faith, precisely as it is also 
the basis of social order. The obedience of the un- 
derstanding forms the character of Christian faiths 
just as the obedience of the will forms the character 
of Christian virtue*^ 

*The heretic is a man, who denies certain articles of Chris- 
tian faith. The unbeliever is one, who denies Christianity it- 
self. Now, if it be true, that every individual has the rig-ht to 
judge for himself, and to determine his own belief; upon what 
pretext can it reasonably be asserted, that either the one or the 
other has determined, or judged, amiss ? Or how is it possible, 
with any consistency, to condemn either of them ? Why re- 
quire, — the above principle once admitted, — that they should, 
either of them, submit their sentiments, or their reason, to the 
sentiments, or reason, of other individuals, who, although 
they may happily chance to think and judge better, are yet, 
after all, just equally fallible as themselves ? Wherefore, the 
case here is precisely this: -Either these men have a right to 
judge for themselves, or they have not. If they have such a 
right, and are allowed to judge for themselves, then has no 
one any claim to control their sentiments, or to impose upon 
them the obligation of believing otherwise than they do. If 
they have not such right, then let the members of the estab- 
lishment, or the pastors of the Protestant churches, say so at 
once ; and at once give up the principle of the Reformation. 

In reality, so long as there exists, or as there is declared to 
exist, no other tribunal above that of private judgment,— so 
long has no one any right to prevent any individual from be- 
leiving that to be true, which appears to be true to him. If, 
adopting the protestant rule, I follow it up consistently, I then, 
of course, believe the truth of my own opinion; — whilst an- 
other, in like manner, and with just the same right and consist- 
ency, believes perhaps directly the reverse. So that thus, 



63 

For example, — ^just to appeal to the dictates of 
common sense, — let the reader imagine (if he can 
imagine such an absurdity,) let him imagine such 
things in the order of society, as a state, or commu- 
nity, without a legislator; — duties to be discovered, 
and performed, by the dictates of each one's private 
understanding ;— laws, whose sanctions, and obliga- 
tions, are to be determined in the breast, and by the 
feelings, of individuals, — and so on. Why, at the 
mere proposal of such a system, there is no one but 
feels at once the grossness of its absurdity; and that 
it is alike repugnant to common sense, as it is in- 
consistent with every notion of social order. Each 
individual his own legislator! And jet such as 
this, — if not greater than this, — is the absurdity, 
which is involved in the leading maxim of the refor- 
mation,— rendering each one, as it does, the su- 
preme arbiter of his own belief; and the judge of ob- 
jects, which, of all others, are the most important 
and incomprehensible. 

Laws presuppose two things, — a legislator, whose 
will renders then) obligatory ; and a visible authori- 
ty to proclaim ai«d promulgate them. Thus, should 
it chance, that any conflict, or seeming contradic- 
tion, takes place between various statutes; — or should 
any doubt arise, respecting their import, or applica- 

making the supposition, that men would, all, judge for them- 
selves, there would be as many opinions as judges; and each 
opinion, however false, would have the very same foundation 
as the truth, and would be entitled to the self-same credence 
and respect. 



64 

tion ; — any dispute, concerning what, or which, is 
the real law itself; — the obvious method in all such 
cases, and that which alone is adapted, both to the 
situation, and capacity of the public, is, — not philo- 
sophically to examine the nature of the laws in 
themselves, — a point which very few are competent 
to determine, or which, perhaps, none can determine, 
with absolute certitude, — but simply to investigate, 
and ascertain, which, and what, is that law, that 
has been proclaimed by the voice, and sanctioned by 
the seal, of lawful authority, — or at least, by the 
voice, and sanction, of the highest authority. 

If the foregoing principles are denied, the conse- 
quence must, then, manifestly be thatt which I have 
so often stated, — namely, that there exists no other 
established basis of belief, save the judgment, which 
is exercised by the reason of each private individu- 
al. In this case, religion becomes just equally fluc- 
tuating, and uncertain, as is the reason of the person, 
who presumes, or undertakes, to judge. It becomes 
no longer a law, but a mere opinion ; no longer a 
prudent conviction, but a rash persuasion, reposing, 
either upon pride, and partiality; or upon ignorance, 
simplicity, or fanaticism. And as, too, the judg- 
ment of one individual is by no means, according to 
the alleged privilege, obliged, or so much as suppos- 
ed, to submit to the judgment of another, who is 
only his equal, — so, of course, is each one, as Bi- 
shop Watson remarks, authorised, not only to be- 
lieve, but to profesSf what, to his own understanding, 
appears the most rational, or true, — according to 



65 

that classic definition, which the learned prelate has 
thought proper to adopt, as the most accurately de- 
scriptive of the religion of the Protestant, "Etsen- 
tire quae velit, et quse sentiat dicere.'^ With these 
maxims it is, certainly, quite impossible to reconcile 
that first, and essential attribute of the Christian 
religion, — its unity. They are, in fact, destructive, 
not only of all unity ; but they are manifestly cal- 
culated to render, — as, wheresoever they are con- 
sistently followed up, they do render,— the state of 
every Protestant community a scene of confusion 
and incredulity. Their never-failing effect is to pro- 
duce, in time, either irremediable doubt, or irreco- 
verable indifference,"^ 

* There is something" in the conduct of the established cler- 
gy, in relation to the present subject, which frequently enter- 
tains the Catholic. It is this, — that, when these gentlemen 
contend with the Catholics, they are sure always to employ 
the arms of the Dissenters, — that is, the real principles of 
Protestantism, — the rights of reason, and the privileges of 
private judgment : whereas, when they engage with the Dis- 
senters, they are just equally sure to make use of the arms of 
the Catholics,— the arguments, and influences, of authority. 
This is a piece of inconsistency, and forgetfulness, of which 
the Dissenters very loudly complain,— reproaching those wri- 
ters with the violation of the most essential rule of the Refor- 
mation ; and even observing to them, that, with such notions 
of religion, they ought, if they had any regard for consistency, 
at once to declare themselves Catholics :— since the Catholic 
church alone is founded upon the basis of authority, — moreo- 
ver, if authority ought to be respected, — is, beyond that o 
every other communion, the highest, the most ancient, and 
the most respectable. Such is the reasoning of the Dissenters. 
6# 



66 

Thus, both by the dictates of good sense, and the 
attestations of experience, I have conducted the rea- 
der to this conclusion, — that, in order wisely to as- 
certain the genuine doctrines, and the real sanctua- 
ry, of the true religion, the sole method is, to find 
out that society, which reposes upon the greatest vi- 
sible authority. And this, too, I have likewise ob- 
served, is, at the same time, an object, so plain and 
manifest, that even the most simple, — did they look 
around them,^ — might discover it, without any diffi- 
culty. To discover it, little else is required than to 
have eyes. For, whilst the Catholic church, — ve- 
nerable for its antiquity, boundless in its diflfusion, 
resplendent in the sanctity of its members, unvary- 
ing, and invariable, in its tenets, — whilst such is 
the Catholic church, — the Protestant societies, 
meanwhile, — the creatures, all of them, of yester- 
day ; insignificant (when considered separately) in 
their extent; inglorious in their founders, — are eve- 
ry where in a state of anarchy, and contradiction, 
— their followers without any fixed system of be- 
lief, — their very ministervS, all, at variance amongst 
themselves ; — under these circumstances, to ascer- 
tain, which is the best guide to truth, or which the 
real sanctuary of religion, should not, — cannotf to 
the sincere enquirer, — appear a task of any great 
perplexity. At all events, the considerations which 
I have thus presented, — simple, as they are striking. 

It is similar to that, which I have already cited, of Rousseau, 
who says, " Prove to me, that I am bound to obey authority, 
and to-morrow I make mvself a Catholic.'* 



67 

—should suffice, if not to satisfy, at least to awak- 
en, the attention of the thoughtful, and the prudent. 
But, unhappily, so it is : — we live in an age of pre- 
judice, and incredulity; at a period of sophistry, 
and disputation. It costs men a great deal,— such 
is the effect of human self-love,— to own, or re- 
nounce, their errors. Once educated, and involved 
in error, they struggle even against their own con- 
victions, and shut their eyes to the plainest truths. 
But, as this part of my subject is so interesting, I 
will again resume it. 

XIV. At the epoch when Luther commenced his 
revolutionary career, there had existed, during the 
long course of fifteen hundred years, a religious so- 
ciety, — the Catholic church, — conducted, under the 
guidance of one supreme head, by a body of pastors, 
who, in conformity with the assurances of Christ, 
considered themselves, — and were equally so consi- 
dered by the public, — as invested with tlie authority 
to judge infallibly, and to decide irrevocably, all 
those questions in religion, which related to the doc- 
trines of Christian faith. The method, in which 
they did this, was, not by creating new dogmas ; 
not by citing the ancient dogmas before the tribunal 
of human reason, in order to examine them in them- 
selves (for this would have been subjecting the wis- 
dom of God to the puny wisdom of man :) but mere- 
ly by the way of testimonyy ascertaining, and veri- 
fying, the tradition, or universal faith, by the tra- 



68 

dition, or faith, of each particular church.* So, 
fo!' example, when Luther, and the reformers, first 
began to preach, the Catholics at once called out, 
'^ These doctrines of yours were never heard of, un- 

* There is not amongst the whole number of the ancient fa- 
thers of the church, so much as one, who, writing upon the 
doctrines of rehgion, does not admit the necessity of tradition, 
as the proper medium to know, and the established rule to in- 
terpret, them. " It is," says St. Clement of Rome, in his epis- 
tle to the faithful at Jerusalem, *' it is according to this tradi- 
tion, that we must teach : because people understand in differ- 
ent senses what is written." St. Clement of Alexandria, in his 
Stromata, observes, that, " those, who explain the Scripture 
against the tradition of the church, lose always the rule of 
truth." In reality, as Dr Doyle remarks, "it must be obvious 
to every man, who is versed at all in antiquity, that the written 
portion of the law was only a supplement to tradition ; and that 
the meaning of it, wherever it is doubtful, or difficult, cannot 
be ascertained, unless by the light of the same tradition." 

'« Thus," adds the learned writer, ** where do we look for 
decisions upon any contested matter of right, or privilege, or 
title, or possession, but to judges ? Why do we employ solici- 
tors, and lawyers, to plead before them, if the law itself can 
decide ? And why have the judges themselves recourse to the 
common law, which is traditionary ; to booljs of authority ; to 
precedents ; unless that neither the statutes themselves, either 
do, or can, contemplate all cases;— or that even if they did, 
they could not be justly, or wisely administered, unless the 
light of antiquity, and the wisdom of past times, v/ere shed up. 
on them ? 

" It is, indeed, little short of insanity in a Christian to deny 
the authority of the church. But, to admit it, and deny the 
existence, or the necessity, of tradition, is an incomprehensi- 
ble absurdity,— the fruit of gross ignorance, of intolerable pre- 
sumption, or of the most lamentable fanaticism." 



69 

til now. Yesterday, we had never so much as heard 
them spoken of. And how, therefore, can they pos- 
sibly be, — or how can we think them, — true ? Truth 
is not the creature of yesterday, or to-day : it is the 
object of all times, and ages : it existed from the 
beginning, and will continue to exist for ever 5 
whereas, error possesses no surer characteristic 
than the feature of novelty. Either, then, you do 
not teach what Christ has taught,-— >and in this case 
we ought not to listen to you, — or else your doc- 
trines are conformable to his. Now, in this suppo- 
sition, you ought, of course, to show, tliat Ihey are 
conformable also to those of his church. For, 
since he had promised to remain, all days, to the 
end of the world, with this divine institution; so it 
could not, even for one single day, teach any doc- 
trines, save those which it had received from its sa- 
cred Founder." Such as this was the language, 
which the Catholics addressed to Luther, and to 
the first authors of the reformation. It was, in 
fact, upon these principles,^ — upon these fundamen- 
tal, and immoveable principles, — that, without any 
process of .argumentation ; without any dangerous 
discussion of the internal nature of the Christian 
dogmas ; without the labour of endless disputes with 
the authors, or advocates, of heresy, — the ancient 
council pronounced their irrevocable decrees ; and 
that tlie whole body of the church said anathema to 
Arius, to Nestorius, to Eutyches, &c., and to all 
those daring innovators, who, like the above here- 



70 

siarchs, substituted the visions of their own fancies 
in room of the ancient faith. 

Before the pretended reformation, never did one 
single sect,, or even sectarist, presume to deny di- 
rectly the authority of the Catholic church. Never 
did they so much as contest the reality, and justice, 
of her right to act, as the judge of faith : — nor did 
they ever call in question the infallibility of her de- 
cisions. They cavilled, it is true, not unfrequent- 
ly, against the forms, and order, of her judgments. 
They contended, that the councils, which had con- 
demned them, were not proper and lawful councils; 
and that they had not observed the indispensable 
rules of a wise and just determination. All this 
kind of remonstrance, and complaint, was, indeed, 
the very common language of tiie early heresiarchs. 
But still, never did any one of these men so much 
as whisper out the insolent, and fatal term, — " In- 
dependence^ Never did any of them pietend, that 
the sole judge of Christian faith is the tribunal of 
human reason. So forcibly, at tliose periods, were 
impressed upon their minds, and upon the minds of 
the whole body of the Christian public, those thun- 
dering words of our Redeemer,—'^' He that will not 
hear the church, let him be as the heathen and the 
publican.'^ 

Even Luther himself, when first he entered upon 
his bold career, still ow^ned, and protested with sin- 
cerity, — or at least with apparent sincerity, — his 
humble submission to the judgment of the church. 
He loudly, and earnestly solicited the convocation 



71 

of a council : and although his soul seemed but an 
assemblage of violent passions, all fed by the force 
of pride, — yet did he, for sometime, show himself 
disposed to bend down his haughty head before the 
tribunal of the chief pastor, and rulers, of the sacred 
fold. The constant practice, and opinion, of all 
preceding ages, confirmed and founded, as they are, 
upon the plainest texts of the divine word, — did not, 
as yet, allow him so much as even to conceive the 
daring idea, that men may destroy that lawful bar- 
rier, which the wisdom of our immortal Legislator 
has erected against the inroads of innovation, and 
and the intrusions of heresy. However, the conti- 
nuance of these dispositions was not of any long du- 
ration. For, when, ere long, his errors were con- 
demned in Rome ;— -and soon as the rapid increase 
of his followers had roused his courage to bolder da- 
rings ; — then, giving ear only to the suggestions of 
his anger, and ambition, he altered at once his lan- 
guage ; and unawed by any feelings of moderation, 
unrestrained by any sense of decency, he insolently, 
in the fury of his indignation, uttered anathema 
against anathema, and unfurled the standard of re* 
bellion. Then it was,— at this awful period, — that 
began, in Europe, a race of error, and the war, 
and conflict of opinion : insomuch, that, witliin the 
short space of very few years, the public beheld a 
hundred new systems of religion, where, until now, 
{they had never witnessed any more than one. 

However, notwithstanding these disorders, and 
spite of all this licentiousness of opinion, it is still 



72 

true, — so deeply were the maxims of the ancient 
faith ingrafted in the public mind, — it is still true, 
that the leading principle of the Reformation did 
not, at once, nor yet very generally, develope itself 
in all its plenitude and deformity. At first, there 
was only a certain number of bold, and penetrating 
individuals, — men, possessed of that kind of charac- 
ter, which hardly any consequences could dismay,— 
that, early, descried its bearings, and at once rush- 
ed forward, and pwshed on to its utmost limits. 
Still, the number of these was, for some time, com- 
paratively speaking, only small. The multitude, 
as yet, still follovved their steps with la?igour, and 
regret. They still continued to cherish some of the 
principal, and most prominent truths of their parent 
church. And what is striking, — or what should, at 
least, seem striking to the Protestant, — is this: 
that, in proportion as each new sect thought proper 
to preserve a greater portion of the ancient truths, 
— so also did it labour the more industriously to 
preserve amongst its adherents the principle of au 
thority. In fact, — let the Protestant deny it as h 
will, — it is still true, that this sacred principle must 
subsist, wheresoever there subsists any order, or 
any respect for truth ; or wheresoever mem admit, 
either any codes of morals, or any forms of worship. 
Essential even in the order of social life, it is dou- 
bly so in the economy, and order, of religion.* 






♦ " Without a centre of unity ; without those ancient bounds, 
vhic/i our fathers have se^,-— without a raUying point, to which 



ii 



For this reason^ — inconsistent as the thing is with 
the maxims of the Reformation, — it subsists, more 
or less, in every one of the sects of Protestantism. 
It subsists in them all : but it is, in them all, a 
usurped authority. Thus, as Montesqieu remarks, 
the first, and fundamental organisation of the church 
of England was created, and established, by the in- 
fluences of despotic power, — " the will, and caprice, 
of a single individual,'^ as he adds, '' there ordain- 
ing, and arranging, every thing.'^^ 

all may fly ;— without a tribunal of final decision, from which 
no appeal can be made, vre shall never rest satisfied, or secure. 

" This tribunal can be no other than that, which the Eternal 
Wisdom has appointed to preserve, with jealous care, the sa- 
cred deposit of his law,— a representative assembly of the uni- 
versal church J the concurring opinion of those, whom the 
Holy Ghost has placed to rule it. Here, all doubts are quiet- 
ed, and aU dissensions allayed ;— here, the weak are strength- 
ened, and the strong are confirmed, in their faith ; — here, we 
tread with a firm step ; and while others are tossed to and fro 
by every wind and wave, we remain secure upon the steadfast 
rock. It is by this, that we preserve the unity of the Spirit in 
the bond of peace. Through this, we believe, and are saved. — 
By this, -with one mind, and with one mouth, tve glorify God, and 
the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ," — The Earl of Shrewsbury. 

* If the Protestant will look at the thing attentively, he will 
at once discover, and, if candid, own, that notwithstanding all 
his liberty, and the boasted principles of the Reformation, he 
believes, after all, upon the authority of other men. Mr. Burke, 
indeed, remarks, that the absence of a general authority in the 
Protestant churches, renders the authority of its individual 
pastors still greater than that, which subsists amongst the Ca- 
tholics ; so that, without any hesitation, the Protestant will be- 
lieve firmly in his parson, although he will, by no means, be- 

7 



74 

XV. The Reformation, properly speaking, accor- 
ding to its fundamental charter ^^^thsd law, which 
gave it birth, and which still sustains it, — is a reli- 

lieve in the universal church. However, be this as it may,— 
look only at the members of the established church,— the igno- 
rant, as well as the learned. They all profess,— nay, multi- 
tudes of them even «wear,— that they believe in the 39 articles. 
And yet, is it not a fact, that few, even very few, have done so 
much, as merely read them ? Therefore, the truth is, that they 
believe them, under the influence and direction of authority. 
At an early period of the Reformation, the nation was com- 
manded and compelled to believe, upon the word, and injunc- 
tion of a mere child, — the Sixth Edward; and a few years 
later, upon the mandate of a -woman,— the imperious Eliza- 
beth :— insomuch, that it was declared, both illegal, and crimi- 
nal, to call in question one tittle, which had been thus sanc- 
tioned by the seal of their imperial dictate. And was not this, 
with a witness, believing upon authority ? 

There subsists, too, still, in this country, an order of submis- 
sion to authority— cruel and disgraceful thing !— which, whilst 
it is repugnant to the principles of Protestantism, is alike the 
violation of the laws, both of charity and truth. I allude to 
those frightful oaths, which are taken by our legislators, ma- 
gistrates, &,c. These men, upon the authority of aritict of par- 
liament,— an instrument, formed, of course, by a set of lay- 
men,— solemnly sw^ar, that the religion of the Roman Catholic 
is a system of idolatry. To take such oaths, upon the sanction 
of such authority, is manifestly a piece of subserviency, which 
every consistent Protestant must condemn. But, then, to take 
such oaths, without having first seriously discussed the truth, 
or falsehood, of the awful imputation, — this, besides being an 
act of blind submission to authority, is, at the same time, a 
solemn mockery of religion. But, the real fact, I believe, is 
this, — that, seldom indeed, does a single individual give him- 
self the trouble so much as merely to reflect upon the awful 
and momentous subject, [See Illustration, H.] 



15 

gious republic (I might say rather, a religious anar^ 
chy,) in which power, under the guidance of no fix- 
ed rule, aud without the assurance of any stability, 
becomes the property either of any audacious dema- 
gogue, wSio has the means, and boldness, to subdue 
the public mind ; or of the canting hypocrite, w^ho 
has the art to impose upon its credulity. Still, how- 
ever, notwithstanding that the maxims of this char- 
ter do thus positively exclude the interferences of 
authority, — still it is the fact, that the respect for 
authority is so deeply imprinted upon the feelings of 
mankind, that nothing can efface it. It will, and 
must, continue to subsist, so long as men continue 
to believe any thing. It will perish, only when pe- 
rishes the last of truths. [See Illustration, G.] 

XVI. The Protestant theologians, many of them, 
did not refuse, for some time, to admit the authority 
of the first ecumenical councils ; insomuch that they 
opposed their decisions to the tenets of the Arians 
and Socinians. They even spoke, — a few of them, 
— now and then, w^ith a certain degree of respect, 
of the ancient Fathers ; citing these, on some occa- 
sions, with honour ; supporting their own opinions 
by the sanctions of their testimony ; and attributing 
to them a considerable share of authority in the de- 
termination of controverted doctrines. The fact is, 
no doubt, manifest, that, wheresoever religion is not 
an empty name, it is wise, and prudent, to trace its 
doctrines, — and reasonable to expect to find them, 
such precisely as Christ Jesus had delivered them, 
~in the writings of those learned, and holy men, 
who lived so close to the age of the first apostles. If 



76 

this be not the case, then it must necessarily be con- 
tended, that the doctrines of salvation, — those sa- 
cred truths which the Divine Wisdom came down 
from heaven to announce to men,— began simply to 
be understood, fifteen hundred years after their pub- 
lication ; and that Luther, after the apostles, was in 
reality the first of Christians, But, surely, com- 
mon sense revolts at the absurdity of such ideas. 
However, be this as it may, — the circumstance is 
still true, that such as these are the propositions, 
which the Protestant is under the necessity of main- 
taining, on all those occasions, when, overwhelmed 
by the testimonies of the Fathers, he finds himself 
compelled to own, that the faith and doctrines of 
those illustrious defenders of the Christian church 
were, in no respect, difierent from the faith and doc- 
trines of the Catholic, at the present day; — that 
they believed, and taught, precisely what the pas- 
tors of the Catholic church believe, and teach, in 
the nineteenth century; — and that it is impossible to 
read their immortal works, without tracing, in al- 
most every page, the express condemnation of th( 
tenets of the Reformation.^ 



II 



* The identity of the doctrines of the Catholic church with 
those of the ancient Fathers, is a point conceded by many of 
the most learned amongst the Protestant writers,— by such men 
as Grotius, Leibnitz, Staike, &c. and even by some of the mem- 
bers of the estabUshed church of this country. Thus, for ex- 
ample, Grotius, in a letter to his brother, says to him, " The 
church of Rome is not only Catholic, but she, moreover, pre- 
sides over the Catholic church. Whatsoever doctrines are 
taught in common by the Western church, united to the 



77 

In relation, in the next place, to the posterior 
councils, — the perplexity, and embarrassment, of 
the reformers, or of the Protestant divines in gene- 
ral, were not much less awkward, than they were 
in the preceding cases. '^ Either,'' said the Catholics 
— and we say so still to every Protestant, — ^^ either 
you consider the ancient councils as infallible, or 
not. In the former supposition, their infallibility, 
you should conceive, must have been founded, — for, 
there is no other basis, — upon the power, and pro- 
mises, of Jesus Christ, — upon a power, and promis- 
es, unlimited, and unconfined^ and whose effects it 
depends not upon you to restrict to any age, or to 
restrain to any period. If the church were infalli- 
ble, during the course of six centuries, — she, then, 
is just equally such, at the present day ; and she will 
also continue to be such, for ever. Wherefore, in 
opposing her decisions, you oppose, in reality, the 
authority of Christ himself. For, amongst all the 
various arguments, and objections, which you al- 

church of Rome, these I find taught unanimously, both by the 
Greek, and the Latin Fathers.'' 

Gibbon, in his Memoirs, asserts, that ** No learned man can 
resist the force of the historical evidence, which establishes 
the fact, that, during the whole period of the first four ages of 
the church, the principal points of doctrine, believed by the 
Papists, were already admitted, both in theory, and practice J^ 

It is, indeed, on account of the exact resemblance of our 
present doctrines to those of the early Fathers, that the first 
reformers, as well as the generality of the Protestant writers, 
have treated the works, and the authority, of these veneinxble 
personages with so much scurrility and contempt. 

7* 



78 

lege against the posterior councils; and above all, 
against that which has censured you, — there is not 
one, which might not equally, — with the same con- 
sistency and truth, — be applied to those ancient as- 
semblies, which you profess to admit. To reject 
any one of them, is to overturn them all. For, they, 
all, either stand, or else fall, together. Concerning 
the council of Chalcedon, the disciples of Eutyches, 
and Dioscorus, spoke, precisely as you do, of the 
council of Trent, Like you, those men contended, 
that their enemies domineered it over them; and 
that the purity of truth had been sacrificed to the in- 
fluences of intrigue, and to the artifices of cabal. 
However, their reproaches, and declamations, were 
unavailing, and disregarded : and it is, even in your 
opinion, right, that they were so. In reality, would 
not disputes be endless, if, before any judgment 
should be looked upon as decisive, it were necessary 
to have the sanction of all the parties, that are in- 
terested in it ? Again, if faith be incompatible with 
incertitude, — or even with the slenderest doubt, — 
then, either there must exist no tribunal to judge, 
and determine, the contests concerning the doctrines 
of religion ; or else, this tribunal must be infallible* 
The consequence, therefore, must be, that you can- 
not, with any thing like consistency, affect to admit 
the authority even of one single ecumenical council, 
without equally admitting the infallibility of them 
all ;— and by another necessary consequence, also, 
without declaring yourselves rebels, both to God 
and to his church.^^ 



79 

^' But if, — in order to avoid these perplexing in- 
ferences,— you should refuse to admit the infallibili- 
ty of the ancient councils, — what benefit,'' — we then 
ask you, — " in the case of such refusal, could you 
derive, or what advantage would you thus possess, 
over the Arians, or the Socinians ? Would you, in 
this case, compel these men to submit, as a necessa- 
ry obligation, to the dictate, and authority, of mere 
human determinations ? But if so, w^ould they not, 
in their turn, oppose to you your own principles and 
your own example ?'' For, '^ Where,'' they ask,—- 
'' where can there possibly be any obligation, orhow^ 
can there exist any substantial motive, for subjecting 
our understandings, in matters of faith, to the under- 
standings, and judgment, of a set of men, who, just 
j like ourselves, are liable to error ? Would not such 
i submission imply manifestly the abandonment of our 
;l salvation to the risk of hazard ? And w^ould it not 
I be believing, if not by the dictate of caprice, at all 
[j events without rule, certitude, or secure conviction ?" 
■ — But, here you again reply, "- that the first coun- 
jil cils — although liable, indeed, to error — did not err. 
^ By the merciful effect of his divine power and wis- 
i! dom, God permitted them to preserve in its original 
ij purity that sacred depositum of his doctrines, which 
i he had communicated to mankind." 
.1 At this observation, the Socinian, the Arian, &c. 
i again interfere ; and taking up the question, remark : 
" The first councils," you say, " although liable to 
I error, did not err. Now, this is precisely the very 
point which we contest. You presuppose, as a certain 



80 

fact, the very circumstance which we deny* As con- 
sistent Protestants, it is your place to prove clearly^ 
to us, — to convince us, by the authority of reason, 
and by the sanctions of the Scripture, that the doc- 
trines, which we reject, are true. Then there will 
be no need of citing to us, or of alleging against us, ' 
the authority and decrees of councils. Or, if 
you cannot do this, — if you cannot establish thei 
truth, and certainty, of your tenets, by the sanctionsj 
of the above attestations, — then it is, surely, still' 
more unavailing to cite to us, by the way of convin-^j 
cing us, or else of shutting our mouths, — a set of 
councils, which, you allow, were liable to error.*^, 
Such as this, — and it is but the dictate of commoD^ 
sense, — is the remonstrance, which the Socinian,! 
the Arian, &c. present to those Protestant establish- 
ments, which, admitting the early, reject the poste- 
rior councils. Neither can any rational reply,— 
the leading maxims of the Reformation once admit- 
ted, — be made to refute it. For, supposing the ear- 
ly councils to have been fallible, — then, according to 
these maxims, it ought to appear necessary, precise- 
ly as in the case of all other doctrines, to discuss 
the tenets, which they have either defined, or hand- 
ed down to us. In fact, not only this, but, — setting 
aside the sanctions of an infallible guide, — it should 
seem, — and indeed is, — necessary to follow up, and 
examine, through all the dark labyrinths of reason- 
ing and argumentation, and at the risk, therefore, 
of being lost at every step, — to follow up, and ex- 
amine, one after another, all the divine truths, 



81 

and doctrines of Christianity. For^ in matters of 
faith, all fallible authority is assentially null, aiid 
groundless^ 

^ Accordingly, it is not the Socinians alone, but 
also many other sects of the Reformation, that, — 
founding their reasonings upon the maxims of Pro- 
testant theology, — complain very loudly of that in- 
tolerance, and inconsistency, which would compel 
them to admit doctrines which their judgment dis- 
approves ; and which even ties them by oaths, and 
tests, to profess tenets, which yet, they acknow- 
ledge, may not be true. All this, they very proper- 
ly remark, is overturning the very foundation of the 
Reformation, and affording a triumph to the Catho- 
lic. For they too, like the Catholic, say, — '' Either 
the ancient church was infallible, or it was not. If 
it was infallible, during certain centuries, — why, 
then, should we not deem it infallible still ; — since 
there are exactly the same reasons for the continu- 
ation of the important prerogative, as there were 
for its alleged and supposed duration? In this 
case, it is in the decisions only, and in the sanctions, 
of the Catholic church, that men ought to seek for 
' the true, and genuine doctrines of salvation. But, 
if the church, at the present day, is not infallible, 
then, also, it is true, that she never was so. And 
in this case, men always might, — and indeed, al- 
ways ought, — ere they admitted, or believed her 
doctrines, to have first discussed, and examined 
them with care. It is, surely, too gross an illusion, 
too insolent a stretch of power, to pretend to oblige 



82 

us to give up our judgment, in calm submission, to 
a certain number of her decrees, whilst you assume 
the liberty of rejecting a multitude of others ; — and 
of rejecting some, that are just equally clear, and 
as well established, as those which you would com- 
pel us to receive. What ! have you then forsaken 
the Catholic church, only to intrude yourselves into 
her place ? Have you accused her of tyranny, only 
to establish upon her ruins a tyranny, that is still 
more revolting, and far worse than hers ? For, at 
all events, the Catholic church possesses in her ow^n 
favour, a long, uninterrupted, and undisturbed pos- 
session. She, in exercising that authority, which 
you arrogate to yourselves, does not, like you, con- 
ts'adict and violate her own maxims. You admit 
certain councils, and reject others. Now, whence 
this preference ? Whence such difference and dis- 
tinction ? By what means do you know, — by what 
criterion do you ascertain, — that, since many of the 
councils have, according to you, taught false doc- 
trines, so those, also, which you admit, may not 
equally have done the same ? — or, that these alone, 
have preserved faithfully the sacred truths of reve- 
lation ? Have you any wise assurance of all this ? 
— any other certitude of it, save the suggestions of 
your own feelings, or the dictates of your own 
judgment? Most certainly not. Therefore, the 
consequence is, that it is to your own weak, and 
fallible authority, that you wish, and seek, to sub- 
ject us. However, do not deceive yourselves. Af- 
ter having taught us to deny, and reject, the autho* 



83 

rity, and alleged infallibility, of the pastors of every 
age, and of the whole body of the universal church it- 
self,— after having done this, you, surely, cannot 
reasonably expect us to acknowledge, without some 
share of difficulty, the singular claim, or attribute, 
of your own inerrancy.'' Such as these are the rea- 
sonings, both of the Socinians, and many of the dis- 
senting sects of the Reformation. They are such, 
that no Protestant defender of councils, or of oaths, 
and tests, and subscriptions, can make any consis- 
tent answer to them.^ 

* "Prejudices, and habit," says the learned Pastor of Geneva, 
Fernex, •' may, no doubt, for a certain time, supply apologists 
for the use of confessions of faith. But it is impossible, that the 
time should not come, when men will own that they are es- 
sentially repugnant to the spirit of the Reformation. Already 
has the church, which was the first to admit the reformation in 
Switzerland,-^the church of Zurich,— that church so eminent 
for its piety and wisdom,— suffered them to fall into disuse. 
Already have several other Protestant cantons thrown off the 
same yoke. Already, in many of the churches of Germany, do 
the Protestants consider creeds, as s® many formulas, devoid 
of any consequence ; which they are careless about observing : 
and which, if they do still retain, they retain merely as the 
remnants of habit. Already, in France, have they left off even 
presenting them to the pastors. It is, therefore, I repeat it, 
impossible, that men should not, ere long, acknowledge the 
necessity of restoring to all Christians, that liberty of examina- 
tion, and that freedom of conscience, which belong to them; 
ind the incontestable right, above all, of regulating their be- 
lief by the word, and directions, of the Bible." 

"Articles of churches," says Bishop Watson, "are not of 
livine authority. Have done with them. They may be true : 
:hey may be false." 



j64 

XVII. Seldom indeed, — or perhaps, never, — do 
the torrents of error, or the tide of opinions, flow 
back to their ancient sources. Thus, it was in 
vain, that some of the Reformers, and a certain por* 
tion of the reformed theologians, attempted to staj 
the violence of the tempest; and to check that con* 
flict and confusion of beliefs, which the Reforma- 
tion had every where produced, among its own vic- 

"When it is considered," says Mackenzie, in his Life <rf 
Calvin, " that the right of private judgment was the leading 
principle, implied, and acted upon, in the lleformation, it is 
scarcely possible to read the repeated instances of intolerance, 
without regretting the inconsistency of the Protestant church- 
es. No privilege appears to have been more variously con- 
tested than the right of private judgment, — a privilege, found- 
ed in the nature, and responsible circumstances, of man ; and 
recognised by the impartial spirit, and high authority of Chris- 
tianity. To say, that the reformers possessed this right, and 
were justified in employing it in the establishment of the re^ 
formation, and that their brethren are not entitled to the same 
privilege, is an assumption, which no friend to religious 
liberty can allow. If the right of private judgment be allowed 
in one instance, it must be admitted in all: since the New 
Testament knows of no limitation, or exception ; but considers 
every man as exclusively responsible to God ; and rests the 
right of private judgment upon that responsibility. The 
denial of the exercise of this rational and Christian rigijt, 
seconded by influence, sufficient to prevent it, would neces- 
sarily have the effect of throwing us back into the darkness, 
and barbarity of the middle ages. The reformation would 
have been impossible." 

I believe, in fact, that it is the case, that creeds are, in every 
Trotestant church, nearly a dead letter ; and that, if their mi- 
nisters are still compelled to subscribe them, it is, as Gibbon 
says, " either -with a sigh, or a smile,*' 



85 

tims and disciples. Its abettors, with very general 
consent, had early been reduced to proclaim this 
grand, and important principle, — " That the Bible 
alone, independent and exclusive of any visible au- 
thority, is the sole rule and depositum of the Chris- 
tian's faith.'' " To know," says Chillingworth, 
the religion of Protestants, you must neither con- 
sult the doctrine of Luther, nor that of Calvin, or 
Melancthon ; nor the Confession of Augsburg, nor 
Geneva ; nor the Catechism of Heidelberg ; nor the 
Articles of the Church of England ; nor yet, the 
Harmony of all the Protestant churches ; but thaf^ 
which they all subscribe to, as the perfect rule of 
their faith and action, — that is to say, the Bible. 
FeSy the Biblej and the Bible only^ is the religion of 
Frotestants. 

Such was the Reformation ; and such the general 
state of Protestantism, at no great length of inter- 
val after the epoch of its introduction. Its mem- 
bers, — that is, the chief portion of its more reason- 
ing partisans, — ashamed of its everlasting varia- 
tions, and tired out with wandering perpetually 
from creed to creed, — thought proper now, with im- 
proved courage and consistency, to disavow at once 
both the authority of the first Reformers, and the 
wisdom of their confessions. " It is not," they now 
said, " by reading our countless creeds and profes- 
sions of faith, — not by confiding in the opinions of 
our Luthers, Calvins, and Melancthons, that you 
will learn our belief. We care little or nothing 
about creeds, and confessions ; and we now laugh 



86 

at the errors of our first apostles. The Bible^ the 
Bible only, is the religion of the Protestants^ 

However, as I have before remarked, — there pre- 
sents itself here a very serious difficulty. The Bible 
is always silent ; and often extremely obscure. It 
does not explain itself. The question, therefore, is— 
Who shall explain it ? This, too, is a question, which 
I have answered repeatedly. Why, — according to the 
above maxims, — all, without exception, should ex- 
plain it* For, as all, without exception, are called 
to the knowledge of the truth, — and truth, it is con- 
tended, is no where to be found but in the Bible,— 
so, of course, it must be the bounden duty of all to 
seek, and to find, the sacred treasure there. This, 
indeed, is so plain a consequence, that no consistent 
Protestant will pretend even to contest it. Well, 
and yet it is true, that it is this,— this very conces- 
sion, — that involves the Protestant in perplexities 
so inextricable, and in contradictions so preposter- 
ous, that one blushes almost for the honour of hu- 
man reason. It was, I have shown, in order to ac- 
count for the method, by which men might, all of 
them, explain the Bible, and discover, in its divine 
pages, the true doctrines of salvation, that the I'e- 
formers, and the reformed theologians, invented so 
many strange and extravagant devices,^ — in the first 
place, that of private inspiration ; next, that of sen," 
timent, and taste, ^€. — contending, that, just as by 
the feelings, and taste, men distinguish heat and 
cold, sweet and bitter; — just so, and by a similar 
kind of mental impulse, do they discover in the sa- 



87 

cred volume the true doctrines of salvation. How- 
ever, ashamed again, ere long, of these and such 
like sensitive systems, they now, as their best re- 
source, concluded, that the real arbiter of Christian 
faith, — the tribunal, which alone and exclusively 
possesses the right of interpreting the Bible, — is, 
the good sense, or judgment, of each private indivi- 
duaL^ 

* The circumstance is curious, and presents a strange piece 
of incoherency. By the fundamental rule of Protestantism' 
every individual possesses the right of private judgment, and 
is allowed, of course, to interpret the Bible, as his reason, or 
his feelings, prompt him : — and yet, (mark, reader, the contra- 
diction !) he is not allowed to interpret the thirty-nine articles. 
In the declaration prefixed to this singular code, it is said, 
" His Majesty prohibits his loving subjects the least difference 
from them, or putting their own sense upon them; but re- 
quires them to be taken in their literal, and grammatical 
sense." "The thirty-nine articles," says Dr. Tomline, *^ are 
to be subscribed, in their plain, and obvious sense ; and assent 
given to them, simply and unequivocally : else, the subscriber 
incurs the wrath of God." In all this there may be some de- 
gree of political wisdom ; but, it is, surely, a piece of very 
gross religious inconsistency. For, if men are permitted to 
explain the Scriptures, why not then the fallible doctrines, or 
decrees, of a few falUble Protestant ministers ? Such restric- 
tion is tolerable, only under a system of infallibility. But then, 
to require moreover, that men should take the above articles, 
in their "literal and grammatical sense ; whereas, they have, ma- 
ny of them, no literal and grammatical sense,— to insist, that they 
shall be subscribed, even under the penalty of "incurring the 
wrath of God," in their " plain and obvious" signification, — 
whereas, no human capacity can understand them ;— nay, to 
oblige men, still farther, to twear, that they believe them ; — 
if all this be not the violation, both of the real principles of 



88 

AH this is repetition ; but repetition is sometimes 
necessary. And hence, although I have already sta- 
ted some of the consequences of the alleged preten- 
sion, yet, again resuming the subject, I will point 
out a few more of its awkward difficulties. 

XVIII. The religion, then, of the consistent Pro- 
testant is thus, according to the above-cited princi- 
ple, transformed into a system of reasoning. And 
the consequence, as I have so often stated, was,— 
and still is, — that it early assumed, and possesses 
at present, as many forms, and features, as there 
are fancies, and feelings, in the human mind. Sects 
at once arose ; and each sect soon generated others, 
— succeeding, and following, one another with rest- 
less and rapid velocity, — like cloud pursuing cloud, 
or wave rushing upon wave. Never did the Chris- 
tian world, at any period, behold so astonishing, 
and so wild a fecundity of errors, — a profusion of 
creeds contradicting creeds, and of doctrines oppos- 
ed to doctrines; but yet all, and every one of them, 
deduced plainly, according to their respective au- 
thors, from the word of God. To pretend to state, 
or even to enumerate them, would be absurd; — 
more absurd than to attempt, on a day of tem- 

Protestantism, and of decency itself, let wisdom say, what is. 
" The thirty-nine articles," says Dr. Paley, " would be found, 
on dissection, to contain about two hundred and forty distinct, 
and independent propositions; and many of them inconsistent 
with each other." " The thirty-nine articles," adds Dr. Bal- 
gui, "impose upon us doctrines of dark and ignorant ages." 
^d yet, men swea?, that they belie ve them ! 



89 

pest, or in the midst of a storm, to count up the 
clouds which obscure the sun. 

XIX. The whole history of Protestantism is re- 
plete with inconsistencies. Thus, notwithstanding 
all the wide liberty of its maxims, and the freedom 
with which its members are allowed to apply them, 
— such, notwithstanding these circumstances, is the 
attachment, which men entertain for their own be- 
lief, — or at least, such was the affection, which the 
reformers, some of them, entertained for their own 
opinions,— united, it may have been, with a certain 
remaining, but expiring respect for unity, — that, 
although indignant at tlie condemnation which had 
been passed upon them by the church of Rome,— 
they proceeded, very early, to condemn, and even 
anathematise, each other. Thus, we know, with 
what severity the arch apostle, Luther, reprobated 
many of the doctrines of his fellow apostle, Calvin, 
— whilst the latter, in like manner, with an equal 
degree of aversion, expressed his dislike to several 
of those of Luther.'* Again, how strikingly do the 

* It would be a very difficult task to show, why these two 
great leaders should thus mutually reprove each other; or 
what there is, in relation to their respective doctrines, that is 
the most deserving of condemnation. Luther, by denying 
free will, and declaring good works injurious to salvation, de- 
stroyed at once the whole system of moral virtue. Calvin, in 
the same way, by the doctrine of inamissable grace, did ra~ 
dically, and really, the self-same thing. For, according to the 
dogma, as explained by the heresiarch, provided that a man be 
once justified, he is, consequently, justified for ever : so that, 
although he continue to commit the most flagitious crimes, 
8* 



90 

punishments, which Calvin inflicted upon the unfor- 
tunate Servetus, evince the abhorrence, which he 
entertained for the tenets of the Unitarians ! But, 
in fact, not only was such as this the conduct of 
those two great authors of the Reformation ; it 
was, moreover, the general, and almost uniform 
case with their disciples, nvhenever, by the seduc- 
tions of eloquence, the cant of piety, or the violence 
of declamation, they had contrived to draw after 
them a certain number of adherents, and obtained 
sufficient influence to institute a sect. On these 
occasions, they all, and each, reciprocally censur- 

they are still no impediments to his salvation. Thus, they ar- 
rive, each of them, at the self-same point ; that is, they, both 
of them, equally annihilate every obligation of morality, and 
of religious duties ; contending", as they both do, that faith 
alone is the principle of future happiness, and the sole precept 
of Christian piety. It is true, they had not the boldness to de- i 
Glare, that faith delivers the believer from the obligation of i| 
obeying the civil laws, — although, indeed, their maxims do, 
certainly, extend even to these. However, the successors of 
these apostles, — and not an inconsiderable number of them, — 
like good logicians, and consistent reasoners, proceeded even 
thus far. Whence, one of their leading tenets was, to ac- 
knowledge no superior, either in religion, or in the order of 
politics;— or at least, no superior save the Great Being, who 
has redeemed us, the Saviour Jesus Christ ;— maxims these, 
which, it is greatly to be apprehended, will not long, in the 
present unhappy times, remain fruitless, and without effect. 
Whensoever, by the frightful permission of God's justice, hell 
prepares a heavy calamity for the punishment of mankind, its 
first step, most frequently, is to suggest some error or other ; 
to scatter it in the walks of life ; a ad then leave it to the ope- 
ration of time to ripen and complete it. 



91 

ed, and condemned each other. But, above all^ 
such as this was uniformly their conduct, whenever 
supported by the state, and encouraged by the po- 
licy of the civil government, they had the good for- 
tune to organise, and create, any great, or consi- 
derable establishment. Then, indeed, as if feeling 
the necessity of union, — or as if they were serious- 
ly alarmed at the dissolution of the truths of reli- 
gion, wliich, under the operation of their own fun- 
damental principles, they saw gradually melting 
away, and disappearing, — then, in imitation of the 
Catholic church, not only did they loudly reprobate 
all innovators, and condemn disunion, but they 
thought proper to bring back and interpose, the 
still stronger checks of power, and the instruments 
of authority. They had recourse to oaths, tests, 
subscriptions, punishments, excommunications, &c» 
Fruitless and unavailing artifices ! which, sapping 
the very foundations of the Reformation, served 
only to point out the despair, and inconsistency, of 
the churches which adopted them. They were 
mere bulrushes, cast into the ocean to allay a 
storm. Men laughed at the flimsy attempt ; derid- 
ed the inconsistency of its authors j and set at 
naught, both the decrees of their synods, and the 
terrors of their excommunications. They went on, 
still reasoning, and dogmatising ; and sects, and 
errors, and incredulity, continued to increase, pre- 
cisely as they had done before. 



92 

XX. The voice of authority thus neglected,— re- 
course was now had to the expedient of conciliaiion. 
But, even this was attended with very little better 
success than the preceding. It produced, indeed, a 
few apparent unions ; or rather, a few partial trea- 
ties of mutual toleration. But, the effects of these . 
proved, altogether, more injurious, than beneficial, 
to the cause of truth. For, although they were un- 
dertaken upon the pretext of charity, and for the 
sake of peace, — yet, jumbling together all kinds of iJ 
creeds, and systems, they, consequently, served 
only to teach, and accustom, the public to look 
upon the circumstance of doctrines as an object of 
indifference. Such negociations do, indeed, form, 
in the minds of the really enlightened, a just subject j 
of public scandal. They are spectacles, such as ,1 
had never before been seen, or heard of, in the an- 
nals of the Christian church. In them, we behold 
a set of religious negociators, pretending to esta- 
blish peace by the mutual concession, and abandon- 
ment of dogmas ; — giving up reciprocally, on each 
side, certain articles, and portions, of their faith, in 
the same way precisely as, after a ruinous war, a 
set of negociators, or princes, surrender to each 
other certain towns or territories; — and stipulate 
ing, at the same time, for certain civil, and profane 
indemnities, in room of the truths, or opinions^ 
which they have thus deserted, and renounced.* 

* Speaking of the reconciliation, which has recently taken 
place amongst the Protestant sects in Germany, Mr. Jacob re- 



93 

XXI, Witnesses, therefore, of all these evils, — 
of all this instability and fluctuation, — the Catho- 
lics, who had long before foreseen and predicted 

marks as follows : " That union is said to have spread still 
wider a spirit of indifference upon sacred subjects. The dis- 
tinguishing tenet of the Lutherans, and that which is contain- 
ed in their symbolic books, to which the clergy profess adhe- 
rence, is the doctrine of the real presence of the body and 
blood of Christ in the bread and wine, in the sacrament of the 
Lord's Supper. This tenet, though it has been ever the pro- 
fession of the Lutheran church, has been long abandoned by 
almost the whole of its ministers. The reformed, or Calvinis- 
tic ministers, had, like their brethren of the Lutheran party, 
little to give up. Their distinguishing tenets of predestina- 
tion, election, perseverance, and impelling grace, were passed 
over in their public services, as obsolete dogmas, never to be 
introduced : and it was generally understood, that, for a cen- 
tury past, they have been scarcely entertained by any consi- 
derable number of the clergy. So that the union, that has 
been effected, is not imagined to have had any other practical 
effect, but that of making the common people think religious 
worship, under any form, as much a matter of indifference, as 
this union, thus easily effected, shows, that different opinions 
are to their teachers." He adds, that—" The church of Rome 
has, in consequence, rceived into her bosom several members 
from the Protestant religion, who are distinguished for their 
virtue, their talents, and their learning,** 

" Men," says the British Critic, " may be brought to coa- 
lesce, and their religious animosities may be calmed. But, 
with them will perish their religion also. They will unite, be- 
cause, bewildered and fatigued by their mutual contentions, 
they have taught each other to despise the very object of 
their dispute, or to give up the pursuit of it in despair. From 
such a downfall there is no recovery. It may, we fear, be re- 
garded as the forerunner of that final state of apostacy, when 
faith will scarcely be found upon the earth." 



94 

them, — now summoned the Protestant theologians 
to declare, where, or when, it was, that they pro- 
posed to stop. They called upon them to point 
out, where, amidst all this confusion of conflicting, 
and contradictory professions of their belief, it was 
possible to discover that striking characteristic of 
the true religion, which St. Paul declares is so es- 
sential to it, — " the unity of faith *^^ ^' The religion 
of Jesus Christ,-^ — observed the Catholics to them, 
— " reposing upon revelation, — and revelation be- 
ing always, and necessarily, unchangeable, — the 
consequence must be, that, whensoever the doc- 
trines of any church, or sect, are found to vary, 
such church, or sect, cannot, of course, be consider- 
ed as the real religion of this holy Legislator.** 
This is an argument, which Bossuet, in his History 
of the Protestant Variations, has developed with 
that force of reasoning, which is peculiarly the 
characteristic of that immortal writer. Struck, 
indeed, with the astonishing production, and una- 
ble to make any reasonable reply to it, the Protes* 
tants remained silent ; — or rather, they honestly 
acknowledged the variations imputed to them. 

It is hence, and after having contemplated that general in- 
difference, which now pervades the Protestant mind in rela- 
tion to the dogmas of religion, that an elegant French writer 
very justly remarks, — " Protestantism is, at present, little else 
than a mere sepulchral monument ; — a tomb, which, as yet, a 
few men mistake for a living object, only because it is still 
adorned with certain images of life, and with a few emblems 
of immortality," 



95 

They even appeared to wonder, that they had not 
varied more than they had done. So sensibly did 
they feel for their own instability, and for the obvi- 
ous tendency of their own leading principles* 

XXIL After an acknowledgment like the above, 
and it is what every well-informed, — if candid — 
Protestant will equally make, — there remains only 
one form of defence, whicli the reformed churches 
can, with any kind of semblance of reasonableness, 
pretend to allege in their own support. It is this ; 
— To maintain, that the doctrines, upon which they 
have varied so much, and contradicted each other so 
very widely, are not, in themselves, essential doc- 
trines ; and that, therefore, men may admit, or re- 
ject them, without any violation of Christianity, or 
without any risk, or sacrifice, of their salvation. 
It was thus, that was first begotten, and introduc- 
ed, that favourite, and now general, system ot fun- 
damentals ; — a system, which reduces the necessity, 
and obligation, of faith to a certain, but small num- 
ber of articles; and considers all the rest, — or at 
least tolerates all the rest, — as immaterial ; or as 
objects, at all events, of very inferior, if not trifling 
consequence. 

It is true, indeed, that the adoption of this unfor- 
tunate device is the necessary result, both of the 
character of the Protestant principles, and of the 
ilsituation, and state, of Protestant societies. The 
^abettors of the Protestant cause were compelled— 
b(they had no other resource) — to come forward in 
its defence, from the nature of the controversy, 



96 



1 



to 
uni 



which they had to maintain with the Catholics, 
concerning the divine authority of the Christian 
church. The expedient, however, although una- 
voidable, is desperate. It forms, again, a system, 
replete with absurdities ; and even repugnant to 
the very maxims themselves of the Reformation ;- 
a system even, which cannot possibly be true, ui 
less Christianity itself be false. Its real, and di- 
rect effect, is the toleration, not only of every spe- 
cies of religious error, but of Socinianism, Deism, 
and in fact of every form of infidelity. 

XXIII. The system ai fundamentals is in the 
first place incompatible with the very principles 
themselves of the Reformation. As a proof of this, 
I appeal, in the first instance, to the rule itself of 
the Protestant's belief, — that rule, as I have so often 
stated, which the Protestant professes to follow, as 
the guide, and foundation, of his faith, — the Bible. 
The case, most certainly, is, — that, ere the Protes- 
tant adopt the alleged expedient, he ought, of course, 
to have proved, that the sacred volume does indeed 
contain it, — that is, that the sacred volume does re- 
ally point, and establish, the distinction between fun- 
damental and unfundamental doctrines ; — specify** 
ing, moreover, at the same time, which are the funJ 
damental, which are not the fundamental articleJ 
These inferences are obvious ; whilst, also, they are 
the immediate dictate of the maxims of Protestant . 
theology. Well, and yet, what is the fact? Why|| 
that, although the defenders of the system have 
been incessantly urged to make out, and establish, 



4 



97 

these important points, yet have they never, with all 
their labour and ingenuity, been, as yet, able to do 
so. Not even have they produced so much as one 
single text, which, in its true and natural significa- 
tion, favoured, — I will not say, directly, but even in- 
directly, — the preposterous notion. On the contrary, 
the Scripture is full of passages, which condemn it. 
Thus, when Christ sends his apostles, to announce 
his divine gospel to mankind, does he say, for exam- 
ple, to them, '' Go ; and teach men to distinguish 
carefully those doctrines of mine which are funda- 
mental, and those which are not such ? Teach them 
not to confound those articles, which they are abso- 
lutely bound to believe, with those which they may 
safely, and without any risk of their salvation, ei- 
ther deny, or disregard V^ Is this, or such as this, 
the language of Christ to his apostles ? No ; he 
tells them nothing of the kind. But, what, then, 
does he say to them ? Why ; he says,-—" Go, and 
teach all nations ; teaching them to observe all 
things^ whatsoever I have commanded you,'* — all 
things^ without any exception : — or, as another of 
the evangelists expresses it, — " Go into the whole 
world : preach the gospel to every creature. Whoso- 
ever shall believe shall be saved ; but whosoever be- 
lieveth not, shall be damned.'* From these passa- 
ges it ought manifestly to seem to follow, that it is 
thp duty of mankind to believe, at all events, impli- 
citly^ all the divine truths of revelation j since the 
gospel, or the word of Jesus Christ, comprises them 
all without exception. Men must, therefore, accor- 



98 

ding to the above awful declaration, cither believe 
them, or be condemned. Now, a system of faith, 
which is repugnant to the testimony of the Scrip- 
ture, — or which even is not clearly contained in the 
Scripture, is incompatible with that grand principle 
of Protestantism, which declares, that the sole rule 
of the Christian's faith is the authority of the Bible. 
So that, thus, the direct inference is, that the Pro- 
testant cannot, without contradicting himself, and 
violating his own favourite maxim, adopt the sys- 
tem of fundamentals. 

In the next place, it is most certain, that the dis- 
ciples of Christ, the faithful executors of his will, 
and commands, never permitted, — never suffered, 
w^ithout the severest censure, — any, even the slight- 
est inroad, to be made upon the doctrines of his di- 
vine religion. St. Paul declares, that faith, just like 
the Divinity itself, is '^ One." And lie, for this rea- 
son, pronounces anathema upon whosoever shall 
presume '' to teach a different doctrine from him- 
self." He commands the faithful ^' to avoid the he- 
retical man ;" — assuring them, that sects, and here- 
sies, are amongst those various crim.es, which ex- 
clude men from the kingdom of heaven. Such, too, 
is the sentence, pronounced by St. Peter, in the se- 
cond of his Epistles; — whilst, in like manner, St. 
John proclaims, that '' w hosoever abideth not in the 
doctrines of Christ, is not of God," — or, as the 
Protestant version expresses it, '^ hath not God," 
Such are the maxims of the apostles; — such the spi- 
rit of toleration, inculcated by these holy persona- 



99 

ges. I can only say this,— that, if the system of 
fundamentals is true, then are their maxims false. 

In the third place, I will remark, what is a cer- 
tain and incontestable fact,— that never until the 
epoch of the Reformation, was there known, or even 
so much as ever suggested, so singular a distinction, 
as that of fundamental and unfundamental articles 
of Christian faith. Such opinion was unknown to 
all the fathers, and to all the councils. It was un- 
known to every class of the Christian public;— not 
to the Catholics only, but even to every sect of he- 
resy. The general, or rather, tlie unanimous senti- 
ment of the whole Christian universe, until the 
above stated period, was, — that there exists only one 
faitJh by which salvation may be attained ; and 
only one churchy in which tliis one faith is professed. 

Wherefore, 1 now leave it to the Protestant to 
ask himself the question, and to examine with seri- 
ous care, upon what grounds, or pretence, it is, that 
he reconciles it to his feelings to live on, calmly se- 
cure, under the direction of a system, whicli is thus 
so manifestly repugnant to e\Qvy dictate of Chris- 
tian wisdom. His sanction, as I have shown, is 
not, certainly, the authority of the Bible, nor the 
testimony of antiquity. Neither is it, — I will also 
proceed to show, — the suggestion of reason itself. 

XXIV. When the Protestants, and the defenders 
of fundamentals, undertake to reason with the Soci- 
nian, the Deist, &c. and attempt to convince them of 
the necessity of revelation, the method, which they 
adopt is the following : — Grounding their demon- 



100 

strations upon the concessions themselves of thosf||j 
unbelievers, they prove, from these premises, in the 
first place, that religion is necessary; and that, 
therefore, there exists a religion. Next, holding in 
their hands the annals of human philosophy, they 
show, that it is not possible, by the mere light of 
human reason, to attain a perfect and complete un- 
derstanding of any one mystery whatsoever ; — that 
where men have had, or have, no other guide but 
the suggestions of their own understandings, they 
have always been the victims and dupes of error ; — 
that, thus unassisted, they will, for ever, wander 
from doubt to doubt ; from incertitude to incerti- 
tude ; — and that, so far from attaining any fixed con- 
victions, they must ere long, — provided that they 
continue to reason on consistently, — feel themselves 
under the necessity of tolerating the denial of all re- 
ligious dogmas, the exclusion of all worship, and 
even the destruction of all morals, — that is, in real- 
ity, the toleration of atheism itself. Such is tlie rea- 
soning of the enlightened Protestant. Whence, also, 
he infers, that, if religion, — a true religion, — be ne- 
cessary, then likewise is it necessary, that God him- 
self should reveal it to us.^' 

* *• There is no medium," says the writers of the British Re- 
view, *' between a full acceptation of the truths of the gospel, 
on the one hand, and downrig-htinfidehty,— by which we mean 
downright atheism, --on the other. V^''herever we may be be- 
. tween these two extreme points, — whether Arians, Pelagians, 
Socinians, Deists, or freethinkers,— to one, or the other, we 
are, most certainly, tending. There may be spots in this wide, 
and desert interval, where we may continue awhile. But there 



101 

Wherefore, behold the awful difficulties, which 
these men, — that is, the defenders of fundamentals, 
— are compelled to admit : God reveals certain 
truths to his creatures, and yet, according to the al- 
leged system, men are at liberty not to believe them : 
they have the privilege to reject doctrines, which the 
Eternal Wisdom has thought proper to impart to 
them for the aid, and security, of their salvation. 
But if so, where, then, is the use of the benefit of 
revelation? If men are really at liberty to deny, 
or to reform, the instructions of the Almighty, 
would it not be just as well, or rather better, that he 
should, at once, have continued silent? However, 
such precisely as this is the liberty, which the advo- 
cates of fundamentals are under the necessity of de- 
fending ; and which also they profanely arrogate to 
themselves. 

''But,'' they reply, — '' surely all the doctrines of 
revelation are not necessary for man's salvation/' 
'' Well I but how then," — I would say to these men, 

is no fixed abode ; no place where we can settle. Either we 
shall go on from faith to faith, or else we shall go on from de- 
clivity to declivity; constantly abandoning one part of Scrip, 
ture after another ; and gradually tending to the land of dark- 
ness, and of the shadow of death." 

These observations are wise ; and the truth of them is very 
strikingly exemplified in all the churches, or associations, of 
Protestantism, where we behold men, daily, *' going on from 
faith to faith, and from declivity to declivity." The progress 
is, in fact, both natural and necessary. For, in Protestantism, 
there is " no fixed abode ;" " no place," where the reasoner 
can "settle," nor yet, quietly,--2//>rMJew%,— repose. 
9# 



102 

— '^ how do you know, and by what means can you 
be reasonably assured, that God has indeed revealed 
truths, which are not necessary? Such gratuitous 
hypothesis is, certainly, repugnant to the notions of 
the divine wisdom, and overturns the very principle 
by which yourselves establish the necessity of the 
order itself of revelation. And neither is this all : 
for, to the feelings, not only of piety, but of reason, 
it appears even more preposterous to assert, that 
men may deny without danger, or reject with impu- 
nity, certain parts of revelation, than it is to main- 
tain, that there exists no revelation at all.'' 

If, then, a comparison were instituted between the 
system of the fundamentalists and that of the Soci- 
nians, I should say, that the opinion of these unbe- 
lievers, — profane and dreadful as they are, — are 
yet, after all, more consistent, more rational, and 
less insulting to the Divinity itself, than are the 
sentiments of the former. For, there is something 
less revolting in the idea of rejecting revelation, be- 
cause men believe that God has not spoken to them, 
than there is in the insolence of rejecting, as the de- 
fenders of fundamentals do, — certain portions or 
doctrines of it, which, at the same time, they own, 
have been delivered to us by the Eternal Wisdom. 
The Socinians, or even Deists, persuading them- 
selves, that religion reposes upon a basis, which is 
purely rational, or human, admit and respect it, 
upon this account, only just so far, and accordingly 
as it agrees with the dictates of their judgment, or 
the suggestions of their feelings; whereas, the ad- 



103 

vocates of fundamentals, acknowledging that the 
doctrines of Christianity are founded, all of them, 
upon the authority of the divine word,— still boldly 
contest, — or rather positively deny , — the obligation 
of always, and in relation to all points, subjecting 
their belief to the authority of this tribunal. They 
assume to themselves the right of preferring, in 
certain points and cases, their own private reason 
before the reason, and wisdom, of the Almighty. In 
short, the Socinian, and the Deist, feeling in them- 
selves the insufficiency of their own talents to esta- 
blish firmly the truth and certitude of any dogma 
whatsoever, are hence unwilling, and for this rea- 
son refuse, to make the prospects of future happi- 
ness, and the securities of salvation, dependent upon 
the belief of any dogma whatsoever j whilst, accor- 
ding to the principles of fundamentalists, the belief 
of certain revealed dogmas, — but only of certain 
dogmas, — is of the most imperious and indispensa- 
ble necessity. And yet, what is the case amongst these 
said believers ? Why, that with all their ingenuity, 
they have, never as yet, been able to define, and de- 
termine which, or what, these important and essen- 
tial dogmas are. There is even no point, on which 
they disagree more widely. So that the consequence 
is, that, amongst all the immense multitude of these 
men, there is not so much as one single individual, 
who is, or can be, wisely and satisfactorily assured, 
that he believes precisely those articles of revela- 
tion, which are required for the security of his sal- 
vation. This, surely, — supposing the necessity of 



104 

the belief in revelation, — is a state of incertitude, 
which, to the feelings of Christian piety, ought to 
appear distressing. 

Such as these are a few of the many alarming con- 
sequences, which result from subjecting the doctrines 
of religion to the feeble and selfish tribunal of hu- 
man reason. Men know not, thus, what it is that 
they may surrender without danger, or with securi- 
ty retain. They possess no principle, whereby they 
can make the useful, but profane distinction. I say,j 
profane; because to imagine, that God has spoken] 
in vain, — that he has revealed a set of superfluous] 
doctrines, — what is this but an insult to his wisdom, j 
and the condemnation of his impenetrable councils? 

Moreover, (for this is another circumstance which 
deserves attention) is it not true, that all the various 
doctrines of the Christian code are linked, — even 
very intimately linked,— together ? Such, no donbt, 
is the fact. But, if so, — then, where every thing isJ 
united, every thing, also, should seem, — and is ofl 
course, — essential. The great aim and object, of re-l 
ligion, is to point out to mankind their proper sta-| 
tion in the order of created beings ; and at the same 
time, to support and maintain them in it, by means 
of the two great laws of truth and justice^ of which, 
dogmas and precepts are the natural and direct ex- 
pression. And how, therefore, in an order of laws 
like these, can there possibly be any thing, that is, 
or that can reasonably appear, indifferent? Upon 
what pretext, or plea, can the violation, or rejection, 
of the laws of truth appear less improper than the 



m 



105 

infraction, or the neglect, of the rules of justice? 
The source of each is the same : and to separate, is 
to destroy them. For, justice, in reality, is but 
truth, rendered sensible by action, — according to 
that saying of St. John, — " He that doeth the truth 
Cometh to the light, that his works may be made 
manifest that they come from God.'^ Whence, the 
consequence is, that God can no more permit error, 
than he can tolerate crime. And, the fact is, that 
the toleration of crime is the necessary effect of the 
doctrines, which consecrate, or allow, the toleration 
of error. This, however, is a proposition, which I 
shall not proceed to illustrate, until I have made one 
or two farther observations upon the inconsistencies 
into which the defenders of fundamental articles are 
reduced to fall. 

XXV. To admit revelation is to believe the di- 
vine truths of religion upon the authority of the Al- 
mighty, who has disclosed them to us. Wherefore, 
since this authority is every where alike, and the 
same, — so, consequently, alike also, and just equal, 
must be the obligation of believing them. To reject, 
or deny any one of them, is, in reality, to reject, or 
deny, the authority upon which alone they, all of 
them, repose. It is overturning the very foundation 
of revelation; and resigning it, undefended, and de- 
fenceless, to the Socinian, and the Deist. 

But, in order the better to feel the connexion, 
which subsists between the doctrine of these unbelie- 
vers, and that of the advocates of fundamentals, I 
will take a hasty review of this system, exactly as 



106 

we examine the religion o^ nature^ — under the three- 
fold heads of dogmas, worship, and morality. The 
identity of its principles with those of the foremen- 
tioned latitudinarians, will appear from the identity 
of their respective conclusions. 

According to the doctrine of the fundamentalists, 
there are certain dogmas, which men may disbe- 
lieve, or deny, without the sacrifice, or risk, of their 
future happiness ; — whilst at the same time there 
are others, which it is absolutely necessary for them 
to believe. This admitted, — the first thing, of 
course, which, both in duty and consistency, thcse|i 
men should seem bound to do, is to lay down somelf 
clear, exact, and certain rule, by means of which 
the mind may be enabled to judge with accuracy, 
and to decide with security, which are really the 
fundamental doctrines of revelation, and which are 
not. Such, certainly, as this, is the first suggestion 
of Christian prudence on a subject of so much mo- 
ment. For, salvation, to an immense multitude of ^ 
individuals, must depend upon the wise solution of it. 

That the fundamental doctrines of salvation are 
really contained in the Bible, — this, no doubt, is 
true. But, tlien, as I have said already, it is like- 
wise at the same time true, that, no where, does the 
sacred volume point out, or specify, which, amongst 
the doctrines which it contains, are to be deemed |*j 
fundamental, and which are not. Neither does it 
any where lay down one single rule, by which the 
important distinction may be ascertained. And 
what, therefore, is again the consequence ? Why, 



4 



107 

the Scriptures being silent upon the subject,— it be- 
came, for this reason, necessary for the Protestants 
to create, and establish, certain arbitrary rules of 
their own. They are, thus, the masters of their 
own belief, --since they are, thus, the masters of 
the rules, which they have themselves invented, in 
order to determine it. 

Among the various rules, suggested for the mo- 
mentous purpose, there are o.ily three, which de- 
serve attention ; and these, indeed, I have discussed 
already j although applying them to cases somewhat 
different from the present. The first of these alleg- 
ed criterions is sentiment, or feeling. " Men feel 
the truth," say some of the advocates of the system 
" exactly as they feel the light, when they behold 
it J warmth, when they approach the fire; or sweet- 
ness, when they eat." Thus have reasoned, and 

still reason,— a certain number of tliese men 

Well, and such, also, as this, is the frequent rea- 
soning of the Deist. " My guide," he says, " and 
the criterion of my belief, are my feelings. I feel 
the Godhead in all his works. I feel him every 
where around me, and within me. Tlierefore, I 
l)elieve arid worship him. In like manner, I feel 
my soul : and it is by my feelings, that I know, and 
icknowledge, its existence." Thus, the rule of 
udging is, in both of these reasoners, the same. 
The difference is, that, conducted by it, the Deist 
eels nothing but the religion of nature; wliilst the 
'rotestant, under its impulse, feels, still farther, the 
■eligion of revelation. Thus, too, it is, and by this 






108 

pernicious method, that the sectarists of almost eve 
ry description, reconcile themselves to their res 
pective errors. The Arminian does not feel the ne 
cessity of grace, therefore, he rejects it. The Cal 
vinist does notfeel^ — whilst the Lutheran does feel 
the real presence ; therefore, the former denies," 
whilst the latter defends, the sacred institution. 
The Socinian does not feel the Divinity of Jesus 
Christ ; as the Unitarian does not feel the existence 
of the Trinity; whence, they, each of them, disbe- 
lieve the important mysteries. Thus, by adopting 
a false rule of judging, men deduce false, and the 
most awfully wrong, conclusions. However, let 
me here, for the honour of Christian wisdom, re- 
mark, — that, finding the injurious consequences, 
which result from the adoption o{ feelings ^ as the 
criterion of belief, — the more moderate, and well- 
instructed Protestants now condemn it, as a piece 
of extravagance, a source of fanatacism, and a prin- 
ciple of incredulity. 

The next resource, — and this was long a favour- 
ite expedient amongst many not unlearned defend- 
ers of the system, — is this : to consider those arti- 
cles alone as fundamental, which are connected im- 
mediately with the foundation itself of Christianity. 
This opinion has indeed a multitude of advocates. 
However, unfortunately for the device, it so chances, 
that, never, as yet, have, either its authors or de- 
fenders, been able to decide, or agree amongst 
themselves, what those articles are, which consti- 
tute precisely the foundation of Christianity, Sa 



109 

that, thus, the rule becomes nugatory, and of no 
avail. Who, in fact, can pretend to judge of the 
connexion between any given dogma, which is 
known, with another, which is unknown? Or, 
what, again, ought reasonably to be considered as 
the foundation of the Christian institute, if it be not 
certain truths, or articles of faith, which mankind, 
in order to be members of the church of Christ, are 
under the strict obligation of believing ? So that, 
in reality, the foundation of Christianity, and fun- 
damental truths, are but one and the same thing. 
Whence, the alleged rule may be reduced to the fol- 
lowing aphorism : " We know the foundation, by 
its connexion with the foundation.'' 

The above explanations therefore not appearing 
satisfactory, nor of any material benefit to the Pro- 
testant cause, another portion of its theologians sug- 
gested a third, in the following terms : — " That,'' 
they say, " is fundamental, and necessary for the 
security of salvation, which the Christian public 
have, every where and unanimously believed. And 
this rule," they again add, ^' is, of all others, the 
safest." This rule, of all others, '' the safest !" — 
But if so, then also it is true, that the safest is, to 
feelieve nothing at all ; — or at least, to believe noth- 
ing, except just what each one pleases. For since 
there is not so much as one single dogma, which 
has not been denied by one heretic or other, so the 
consequence would be, that there do not exist any 
fundamental truths whatsoever^ and that it is need- 
less to undertake to ascertain them. However, be 

10 



110 

this as it may, the foilowing inference is, at all 
events, certain,— that the alleged rule is clearly re- 
pugnant to the leading rule of Protestantism, which 
admits of no human authority in the determination 
of the articles of belief. For, the consent of men, 
however it be understood, forms, according to the 
opinion of every consistent Protestant, only a hu- 
man authority, and as such, exposed to error; and 
therefore, for this reason, insufficient to fix, and to 
decide with certitude, what in the Christian religion 
is really fundamental, and what is not. It is thus a 
principle, too wxak and fluctuating, to form the ba- 
sis of Christian faith. 

XXVL I have stated the above methods of ex- 
plaining the supposed fundamental articles, not so 
much with the view of refuting them, as from the 
design of pointing out the difficulties, to which the 
defenders of Protestantism are incessantly reduced. 
In fact, the above methods, — although they may 
still have, each of them, a certain number of admir- 
ers, — are not those, after all, which, at the present 
day, are the most usually adopted. There is a por- 
tion of natural rectitude in the human mind, even 
when it is the dupe of error, which sometimes com-^ 
pels it, in its very aberrations, to wander with a 
certain degree of consistency and care. It is so in 
the present case. For, finding that the rules, w'hich 
I have been citing, are replete with inextricable dif- 
ficulties and contradictions, the more enlightened 
theologians of the Protestant communions Imve 
adopted, very generally, different ones ; — a set of 




HI 

rules, indeed, which are founded upon the. basis it- 
self of the Reformation. The three following are 
the principal ones : 

First, — ** That the only sure guide, and founda- 
tion of the Christian's faith is the authority of the 
Bible, interpreted by the best dictates of his own 
understanding ;'' — a maxim this, which constitutes 
the real grounds of Protestantism, and which no 
Protestant, if consistent, can reject, without ceasing 
to be a Protestant. 

The second, — '' That the sense of the Bible, in 
order to create an obligation of belief, ought neces- 
sarily to be clear.'' This, too, is a rule, which is 
but consonant to the former, and to the suggestions 
of common sense. For, without this, — without a 
certain degree of clearness, — men would believe, 
without knowing what they believe, which would be 
an absurdity ; or else, without being prudently as- 
sured, that the Bible does really so direct, and 
oblige them to believe, which, again, would be un- 
reasonable. 

The third,— <^ That where the Bible appears to 
teach what is unintelligible, and beyond the reach of 
the human understanding, it is then proper to inter- 
pret it in that sense, which is the most consonant to 
the dictates of reason." This regulation, too, is in 
reality, but the natural consequence, and develop- 
ment of the two preceding ones. Because, if rea- 
son be the interpreter of the sacred pages, it cannot, 
of course, be supposed to interpret them in a sense, 
which is contrary to the suggestions of its own light 



112 

and apprehensions ; attributing to them a significa- 
tion, offensive to the understanding ; and from which 
the mind recoils dissatisfied, and unconvinced. In 
short, this is the fact, — that the interpretations of 
reason ought to be conformable to reason. For if, 
according to the second rule, they were at once clear , 
and at the time, by supposition, unreasonable9 — the 
consequence would then be, that the mind w'ould be 
under the obligation of believing a clear absurdity. 
The leading principle of Protestantism being once 
admitted, — it, of course, becomes necessary, — or at 
all events, a piece of consistency, — to admit those 
rules, which are founded directly upon it^ — and 
which also its defenders have, most generally, 
adopted, and observed. However, who is there, 
that, in this case, does not see, that the authority of 
the Bible is, thus, after all, neither more nor less 
than the mere authority of human reason ? So that, 
in fact, all the rules, which I have thus far stated, 
might be compressed into this one, — "That men 
should, each, believe what they please; or what 
their own reason points out astrue.^' Behold then, 
here is the very rule, and maxim, of the Socinian, 
and the Deist : I might, indeed, add, still farther, — 
and of the Atheist too.=^ 

* The French Encyclopedists, D'Alembert, Diderot, &c. trac- 
ing the progress of error, as created and conducted by the rule 
of Protestantism, consider its last step as terminating in down- 
right atheism, «' The Catholic, Apostolic, and Roman church," 
they say, ** is incontestably the only sure one. . . But this re- 
ligion, at the same time, requires from those who embrace it. 



113 

XXVII. At a certain period, and even for some 
length of time, the Protestant churches in general 
refused to admit the Socinians into the class of those 
societies which had retained, what tliey called, 
" the foundations of Christianity.'' In reply to this 
awful anathema, the Socinians, indignant at the 
circumstance, came forward, and boldly asked the 
members of these associations, upon what pretence, 
or by what authority, it was, that they excluded 
from the prospects of salvation a set of men, who, 
just equally with themselves, admitted, and revered, 
the sacred scriptures? "With what right," they 
said to them, — '' do you prefer your reason to ours ; 
and affect to decide, what the Scriptures themselves 
do not, — pretending to determine, — as you do, — 
which are those precise dogmas, which it is necessa- 

the most entire submission of their reason. When, therefore, 
there is found in this communion a man of a restless and uneasy 
spirit, and difficult to satisfy, he begins, ere long, to set him- 
self up as the judge of the truth of the dogmas, which are pro- 
posed to him to be believed. And as he does not find in these 
objects of faith a degree of evidence w^hich their nature does 
not admit of, he now makes himself a Protestant. But, soon 
discovering the incoherency of the principles which character- 
ise Protestantism, he seeks in Socinianism for a solution of his 
doubts and perplexities ; and he becomes a Socinian. Between 
Socinianism and Deism, there is only a very imperceptible 
shade. The distance between them is but a step. According, 
ly he takes it. But, as Deism itself is, again, an inchorent sys- 
tem, he precipitates himself insensibly into Pyrrhonism,— a 
state of violence, and just as humiliating to self-love, as it is in- 
compatible with the nature of the human mind. In fine, he 
concludes by falling into Atheism." — ^rt. Unitaires. 

10* 



114 

ry for men to believe, in order to obtain salvation V^ 
These, and such as these, were the questions, to 
which the exclusionists could return no reasonable 
answer. So that, at present, the Socinians are 
every where, and without a murmur, allowed to 
rank themselves amongst the members of the Protes- 
tant societies, — although, as the reader knows, they 
deny the Divinity of Christ; the mystery of the Tri- 
nity; the eternity of future punishments, &c. 

Considering the above circumstance, — but, still 
more, the principle upon which it is founded, — I 
might here again ask the question, — '' Where the 
necessity can be, — or what even is the use, — ^of such 
instruments as confessions, and creeds, and forms 
of faith ? What end, or purpose, do they answer, 
except to check the influences of reason ; and to re- 
strict that liberty, which, according to the funda- 
mental law of Protestantism, men, all and each of 
them, possess of interpreting the Bible by the dic- 
tates of their own understandings V^ In fact, not 
only this, but the mere act of teaching, or the most 
simple instruction, as they serve to prepossess the 
mind, and to give to it a certain bias, — so do they 
tend to substitute the authority of the teacher in the 
room of the capacity, and investigation, of the indi- 
vidual thus instructed, — a circumstance even this, 
which, if strictly considered, forms another viola- 
tion of the laws of Protestantism. For, according 
to those laws, it is not only the privilege, but the 
duty of every individual to determine his own be- 
lief by the dictates of his own judgment. Accord- 



115 

ingly, struck with these, and with such like difficul- 
ties, various sects of the Reformation, and in parti- 
cular the Independents, have, long since, rejected 
all formularies of faith, and even catechisms them- 
selves, in order, as they observe, to confine them- 
selves to the '^ pure, and only word of God." And 
these are the men, who, along with the Socinians, 
form, certainly, by far the most consistent portions 
of the Protestant community. 

XXVIII. I have repeatedly made the observation, 
that pride, fanaticism, the love of novelty, &c. have, 
ever since the era of the Reformation, been constant- 
ly, and assiduously employed in the abuse of the sa- 
cred Scriptures. Whence, the consequence has been, 
that sects, and errors, have gone on regularly in- 
creasing, and multiplying, — rendering Protestan- 
tism a scene of the most indescribable confusion. 
Now, the fact is, that all these sects, and errors, 
however contradictory, or even preposterous they 
may chance to be, were created, all of them, out of 
the same principle ; and possess, therefore, each of 
them, the same claim, if not to approval, at least to 
toleration. It was, therefore, hence, — that is, on 
account of this palpable, but unfortunate piece of 
consistency, that there was, ere long, introduced, 
and gradually established, that pernicious, but now 
fashonable system, which, every where, pervades 
society, — latitudinarianism. The propagation of this 
system, though congenial to Protestantism, and fa- 
voured by the general temper of the Protestant pub- 
lic, was particularly aided by the industry of a set 



116 



n\ 



of learned raen^ who^ mild and moderate in their 
characters, were, for this reason, averse to the ex- 
tremes, and excesses, of fanaticism, which they, 
every where, beheld around them. They saw the in- 
temperance, with which a multitude of enthusiasts | 
defended doctrines, not only grossly false, but some- 
times profanely wicked. And this, whilst it contri- 
buted, still farther, to indispose them, served also, 
at the same time, to inspire them with a secret re- 
pugnance to every kind of mystery. Thus it was, 
that their reason, unable by itself to comprehend, 
and unwilling to sustain, the whole weight of mys- 
terious doctrines, began, ere long, to assault the 
entirefabric itself of Christianity. They even pro- 
ceeded, some of them, to shake its sacred columns 
with a still greater degree of violence than that 
which they had before condemned in others. As- 
siduously digging to find out, as they pretended, its 
foundations, they concluded soon, by not leaving in 
it so much as one stone upon another. Thus it is, — 
by4hese easy, but awful means, — always reforming, 
and improving; simplifying, and retrenching; — 
that Protestantism is now^, every where, become, — 
and particularly amongst the learned, — a school of 
Socinianism, and incredulity; of Pyrrhonism, and 
indifference. 

Thus, for example, in this country, the charac- 
ter of religion has been, very generally and syste- 
matically, reduced by Hoadley, and his literary 1 1 
followers, to a something that is little better than 
artfully concealed Deism. Compelled, as these 



117 

men consistently felt they were, by the principles 
of the Reformation, — to allow all men to judge for 
themselves, and to follow the dictates of their own 
judgment, — and therefore, of course, to tolerate 
every order of believers; — they thus opened an 
abyss, in which all sects and forms of religion come 
together, and unite ;^ — or to speak more accurately, 
in which, all plunged together, mutually confound 
and destroy each other. For, as no one religion 
can properly subsist, but by the rejection of all 
others — so do they reciprocally expire in each 
other's embraces. Thus, by removing that sacred 
barrier, which separates truth from error, and the 
real worship of Christianity from the pretended re- 
formations of human wisdom, our modern innovators 
have gone so far as to set aside the very badge, — 
that distinctive badge, — which points out, and first 
forms, the Christian, — the divine seal, and stamp, of 
Bajjtism. Baptism, — which, the Scripture declares 
is so essential to the security of salvation, — is, ac- 
cording to the school of Hoadley, neither more nor 
less than an empty, unmeaning ceremony, — a mere 
childish rite. Such, too, as this is the notion, which 
is very commonly entertained of the mysterious ac- 
tion in many other Protestant states; insomuch 
that, in some of them, the civil power has been obli- 
ged to interfere, in order to prevent its total aboli- 
tion. In these, — or at least, in several of these, — 
if the infant be still a sacred being, — if religion still 
sheds its amiable influence around its cradle, — it 
is to the wisdom of the civil policy, that the grati- 



118 



tude is due : for, it is its protection alone that has 
defended the rights hoth of the Christian, and of the 
man^ against the cold, and inexorable indilBference 
of a barbarous theology.=^ 

From England, the doctrines of latetudinarian- 
ism, and infidelity, have passed over to America. 
It is in its newly erected university of Cambridge 
in particular, that the seeds of irreligion are sown 
in the minds of the young. Thence, they are car- 
ried, and profusely scattered abroad throughout air 
the provinces of that boundless continent. There 
they grow, and develope, and expand themselves, 
with such a degree of luxuriancy, that the old plant 
of the Reformation is nearly choked under the con- 
fusion, and pressure, of their shade. There, as in 
Europe, the ministers of the countless sects are cai'c- 
ful not to shock and offend each other by preaching 
a series of contested mysteries. Or, rather, — since 

* " It is painful,'* says the learned Bishop of Bath and Wells, 
Dr, Law, — to notice, with what coldness, with what inattention , 
our ceremonies, and even the two sacraments themselves, arc,, 
for the most part, observed. Thus, with regard to baptism, the - 
first office of our church, the spirituality of the rite appears, atJ 
best, to be very inadequately apprehended ; and often, not to be 
considered at all. It is, indeed, outwardly complied with, in 
deference to custom, and from a regard to legal and secular? 
considerations. The idea, however, of baptism being a means* 
o{ grace, the appointed mode for the communication of God's 
Holy Spirit, — these awful considerations seldom enter into the 
minds of the parents, the sponsors, or the people. Surely, 
this is an ordinance which ought not to be so lightly esteemed, 
or rather, so entirely disregarded, as appears, alas I to be the 
case with too many." — Charge, 



119 

all mysteries are contested, — they appear to be mu- 
tually agreed amongst each other not to preach any 
mystery whatsoever. Their method is, vaguely to 
dissertate upon certain subjects of morality ; which 
alone, just like the Deist, they are pleased to incul- 
cate, as essential. It is true, they put t^e Bible, 
without note or comment, into the hands of the peo- 
ple : — and in doing this, — that is, in giving them a 
book, which, either they do not read, or else read 
without understanding it, — they give them, as they 
are pleased to call it, — '' a religion/^ 

In Protestant Germany, the scene, as it is des- 
cribed by its own Protestant writers, is, if possible, 
more afflicting still. There, these writers tell us, 
the very ministers of the different sects, whilst they 
pretend to revere the Bible as the sole rule of Chris- 
tian faith, make it, at the same time, their real en- 
deavour to bring it into contempt. By the aid of 
what they call their ^^ Biblical Exegecis,'' — that is, 
a licentious art of criticism, — they deny the truth of 
the narratives concerning Moses; — consider the 
book of Genesis as little else than a tissue of alle- 
gories, or in other words, mere fables ; — reject the 
prophecies, miracles, &c. Such as this is the ge- 
neral state of the cradle, and nursery, of the Refor- 
mation. [See Illustration, I.] 

Now, who — (admitting the Protestant rule of 
faith) — who can prove, that the above interpreta- 
tions, — which are so convenient to human self-love, 
and therefore so generally received, — are, after all, 
subversive of the fundamental principles of Chris- 



120 

tianity ? It is true, they may seem opposed to the 
Scriptures. But, if the Protestant rejects them up- 
on this pretext, then should he likewise reject that 
other canon of biblical criticism, in which he con- 
tends, that in certain cases, it is necessary to do 
violence to the sacred text. It is, therefore, impos- 
sible for him, — provided only that he be consistent, 
—to refuse, I do not say, merely to tolerate, but 
even to admit, such interpretations, both as clearer 
in themselves, and as more conformable to human 
reason. 

However, be this as it may, it is, certainly, by 
the means which I have been describing, that men 
arrive at that boasted and fashionable system of re- 
ligion, which they now call ^' rational Christianity.'^ 
They curtail from the sacred code, and reject, w hat- 
ever their reason is unable to comprehend. They, 
therefore, reject all mysteries; — and therefore again, 
all dogmas : — since there is no dogma, but wiiat, in 
one regard or other, includes some mystery : be- 
cause all mysteries, in one regard or other, bear 
some relation to infinitude. Now, what, in this 
case, is the consequence ? Is not Socinianism the 
obvious and direct result ? Such, certainly, is the 
fact. However, unfortunately, the evil does not 
stop even here. The mind, where it continues to 
reason on, does not always repose in Socinianism. 
The principle which it has adopted urges it on still 
farther : so th^t, ere long, finding mysteries, — in- 
comprehensible mysteries, — even in Socinianism it- 
self, it concludes frequently, by believing nothing j 



121 

and spite, not only of the Scriptures, but of reason, 
conscience, and the united testimony of mankind, 
subsides into a state of torpid and unfeeling iiidif" 
ference. Here it is, under this frightful state, — that 
divisions cease j — cease, not by any agreement in 
doctrines, but by their annihilation. It is true, in- 
deed, that between this state of things and Catholi- 
city, the whole intermediate space is filled up with 
confusion and contradictions, — with errors of every 
form, and illusions in every attitude. It is only in 
the two extremes of Catholicity and infidelity that 
unity is found to meet ; — in Catholicity^ because 
there is the plenitude of truth ; in infidelity ^ because 
there is the plenitude of error. 

XXIX. A multitude of Protestant theologians 
have piously laboured hard to guard the public, and 
to maintain themselves, at a kind of equal distance 
between Catholicity on one side, and Socinianism, 
or Deism, on the other, — alike anxious to avoid 
both of the two extremes. Their efforts, however, 
as they were acts of inconsistency, have proved 
fruitless, and unavailing. For, neither do the prin- 
ciples, nor the reason, of the consistent Protestant 
allow him to stand still between the two. Dogma- 
tically to tolerate a certain number of errors, is, in 
reality, the positive engagement to tolerate all. 
Whence, the problem to be solved is this, — " To 
preserve Christianity, without requiring the distinct 
belief of any dogma,-' To this perplexing difficulty, 
no other, or at least no better answer can be given 
than that of Chillingworth, who reduces the funda- 



mental articles to *^ ^n implicit faith in Jesus Chri^t^ 
a,Bcl bis word.'* Now, short as is this creed, yet did 
Bossuet compel itp author stiH farther to abridge it. 
He even pushed hiiii^-^witboqt leaving him so much 
as one loop-hole to escape,— »to the necessity of ad- 
mitting the toleration of Atheism itself. '' This 
kind of faith," says Bossuet, " with which Mr. 
Chillingworth is contented,-^.' I believe what Jesus 
Christ wishes me to believe, or what his Scriptures 
teach me,'-^ means nothing more or less than this,— 
' I believe all, that I choose to believe : and all that 
I think proper to attribute to Jesus Christ, and to 
his word ; without excluding from this faith, either 
any religion, or any of those sects, which admit the 
Scriptures. Neither, indeed, do I exclude the Jew ; 
because he, like myself, can say,— -I believe all, that 
God wills me to believe; and all that he has an- 
nounced by his prophets, concerning the Messiah : 
-^a proposition this, which as really includes every 
truth, and in particular the belief in Jesus Christ, 
as does the proposition of Mr. Chillingworth. And 
not only is this the fact; but it is still farther true 
that, upon this model, another implicit faith may be 
formed, which the Mahometan, and the Deist may 
possess, just equally with the Jew and the Chris- 
tian,—^ I believe all, that God knows;'— or to push 
the point a somewhat farther, one might give eveu to 
the Atheist hin^self a formula, as it were, of implicit 
faith, expressed in the following words : — ' I believe 
all that is true, and whatsoever is conformable to 
reason.' This, too^ is a proposition, which compri- 



1^3 

ises every thing, even the belief iii ChTistiamty ; 
since Christianity is of course true, and its wor- 
ship, as St. Paul calls it, reasonable/' 

Bayle, although, as a Protestant, he Was interes^- 
ted in justifying the system of futidamentals, yet oWhs 
himself compelled to pass the same judgment upon 
it, as does the good sense of Bossuet. He proves, 
that, according to the principled of Protestantism, 
it is impossible, with any thing like consistency, to 
exclude from salvation any class of heretics what- 
soever; and not only this, but not even the Jews, 
Mahometans, or Pagans i^that is, be contends, that 
whenever men set aside the unity of truth, as the 
necessary law of human understanding, they then 
proclaim absolute liberty of belief; and establish, 
consequently,— or at least, allow^, — as many religi- 
ons as there are opinions, or judgments, in the 
minds of men. For, since the principle from which 
they start does not admit of any limits, so also it is 
in vain to attempt to impose any restrictions upon 
its consequences. Be the point what it may, to 
wliich men confine these, — straight, the principle, 
upon which they are founded, protests loudly against 
the act of violence. And unhappily for the cause of 
religion, it claims to itself, before the tribunal of 
real and inflexible logic, a triumph as well over con- 
science, as over the injunctions of Christian pietyv 

XXX* I have already i'emarked, that it is with 
errors as it is with truths. That is, precisely as all 
truths are united and linked together, so also it is 
the case with errors ; these are intimately connected 



124 

with one another. Whence, it follows, that to tole- 
rate certain errors, and at the same time refuse to 
tolerate others, which are dependent on them, would 
be, — according to the canons of a system, which is 
founded upon the process, and results, of reasoning, 
—acquitting one set of men on account of their in- 
consistency 5 and condemning another, because they 
have reasoned more coherently, and deduced their 
conclusions better. To oppose the dictates of com- 
mon sense is a vain attempt. Prevail they will, at 
one time or other. And the consequence will be the 
reign of universal toleration, — a law which is the 
general, and the necessary, result of error ; — and 
which, also, there is reason to apprehend, is now 
rapidly advancing to establish its fell dominion 
upon the ruins of truth, and the destruction of 
Christian virtue. 

In reality, let us again just start from the prin- 
ciple, which is the ground of Protestantism, and 
the basis of the system of fundamentals. The Bible, 
according to that principle, is the sole rule of faith. 
And since Christ Jesus has not, according to it, 
again, — left any living authority upon earth to in- 
terpret the divine volume, — so the consequence is, 
that each private individual is allowed to interpret 
it for himself; and to seek out in its sacred pages 
for that religion, and mode of worship, which he is 
bound to believe, and cultivate. His duty is simply 
this, — to believe what, according to his own appre- 
hensions, the Bible teaches clearly ; and what is not 
repugnant to the dictates of his own understanding. 



125 

And since no one has a right to say to his neighbour, 
— " I have a greater share of reason than you have ; 
— noy judgment is sounder, and my opinions better, 
than yours,'' — since no one has any right to say this, 
so does it follow, that no one ought, or can, with any 
justice, pretend, to condemn the interpretations of 
other men ; but, on the contrary, should consider all 
religions, and modes of worship, as just equally 
safe, and equally good, as his own. Besides, al- 
though it might so chance, that a man did persuade 
himself, that he alone is certainly in the right, — still, 
since it is not, after all in the power of any indivi- 
dual to give himself any infallibility, — so would it, 
consequently, be wrong to deny salvation to those, 
who, making the best use of that share of reason, 
which God has given them, are, nevertheless, we 
will suppose, unfortunately deceived. 

Ill like manner, it would be a piece of injustice? 
and inconsistency, to refuse salvation to those, 
whose judgment, not discerning clearly that the 
Scriptures are inspired, — for this reason, either en- 
tertain doubts respecting revelation, or, it may be, 
formally deny it :-— " because,'' they say, '' after 
having very seriously, and maturely, examined the 
question, we still find the most peremtory and insu- 
perable objections against it." Now, since rea- 
son is the only acknowledged judge, and interpre- 
ter, of the sacred volume, — and, of course, in the 
order of analysis, the sole foundation of their be- 
lief, or opinions, — so, consequently, to pretend to 

oblige them to believe what is contrary to the die- 
11* 



126 

tates of their reason, is an act, not only of inconsis- 
tency, but even (the above principle admitted) of in- 
justice. 

XXXI. Wherefore it is thus proved, that the 
Protestants, in order to be consistent, are reduced 
to the manifest necessity of tolerating, not only all 
those sects which admit the Scriptures, — such as the 
Arians, the Unitarians, the Socinians, and so on, — 
but even the very Deists, who reject them ; — or who 
rather, as they contend, reject only those human in- 
terpretations, which the Protestant churches think 
proper to affix to them. For, in reality, the Deist 
does admit the Scripture upon tlie self-same title a& 
does the Protestant ; he interprets it after the self- 
same method ; — and finally, just like the Protestant 
again, — he refuses merely to believe, wiiat to him 
appears either obscure, or repugnant to the dictates 
of his reason. Thus, Rousseau, for example, be- 
stows the highest and most eloquent praises upon 
the sacred volumes. It was his practice to read 
them unceasingly ; and " their holiness,'' he tells us> 
'' and their sublimity, spoke feelingly to his heart." 
In like manner. Lord Herbert (of Cherbury) calls 
Christianity " the most beautiful of all institutions.'' 
Such too, as this is the ordinary language of many 
Deists, who, by denying revelation, contend,— just 
as the Socinians do in denying the divinity of 
Christ, — that they understand the Scriptures still 
better than do the Protestants ; and that even they 
obey, still more faithfully than the latter, the com- 



inands of Christ, who, according to them, preached 
no other religion but that of nature. 

It is painful to the pious, and believing, Protes- 
tant to see consequences imputed to his principles, 
which he not only rejects, but views with the same 
degree of horror as does the Catholic himself. 
However, be this as it may, — if those consequences 
be really contained in his principles, — then, so far 
from being an act of illiberality, it is, on the con- 
trary, an act of charity to point them out. Accord- 
ingly, not only do the Socinians, and the Deists, 
defend their respective errors by the principles of 
the Reformation, but even the very Atheist himself 
does the same. Presenting himself, in his turn, 
before the Protestant, he with confidence addresses 
him thus : ^' Like you, I acknowledge no other tri- 
bunal but that of my own reason. Like you, I be- 
lieve what my reason comprehends ; and, like you, 
I reject, what appears to my reason unintelligible. 
Thus, to you, transubstantiation ,• to the Calvinist, 
the real presence, appear absurd. You, therefore, 
both, disbelieve those dogmas : and you are, both, 
in the right. The Socinian, and Unitarian, do not 
understand the Trinity : they, therefore, refuse to 
admit it; and they, too, are in the right. The 
Deist, as he understands no mystery whatsoever, 
so he rejects all mysteries. And he, again, is in the 
right. Now, in my eyes, the Divinity is the great- 
est, and the most impenetrable of all mysteries. 
My reason cannot possibly comprehend the exis- 
tence of an eternal Being: and therefore, I cannot 



128 

believe it. I merely claim to myself the same right | 
as you do ; or as do the Calvinist, the Unitarian, 
the Socinian, and the Deist. You, and they, and 
myself, have all and each of us, the self-same rule 
of faith. We all of us equally exclude any other 
authority, save that of reason. Therefore, with 
what consistency, or with what justice, can you 
pretend to condemn or censure me ? If I ought to 
renounce my reason; or if you conceive me crimi- 
nal for listening to its suggestions, — do you then 
yourself give up your reason too, which is not more 
infallible than mine ; — abjure your rule of faith ; 
and declare honestly at once, that what you have 
hitherto taught according to this rule, is founded 
upon no substantial basis; and that if the truth do 
really exist any where, you areas yet unacquainted 
with the means by which it may be discovered.'^ 
Such as this is the reasoning, and such the lan- 
guage, of the Atheist. 

Considering the above reasoning, inasmuch as it 
is founded upon the leading principle of the Refor- 
mation, it does certainly follow from it, that the 
Protestants cannot, with any real consistency, or 
without violating their own maxims, refuse tolera- 
tion to the Atheist himself. They may say, indeed, 
that he makes bad use of his reason, and that he is 
not sincere. But, might not the same thing pre- 
cisely be said of the Socinian, the Unitarian, and 
in fact of the whole herd of heretics, without excep- 
tion ? Such reproach is, no doubt, unmeaning, and 
without any force, in the mouths of all sectarists 



129 

whatsoever; because they have all, and each of them, 
a just and equal right to address it to one another. 
What the Lutheran says of the Atheist, the Atheist 
can say just equally of the Lutheran. And who, in 
such case, is the judge between them ? — Reason ? 
But, it is the judgment of reason precisely that is 
contested. For, each pretends, that reason deter- 
mines in his own favour. So that to call in reason 
to decide the difficulty, or the difference between 
them, is, in fact, but solving the question by the 
question itself. It is making a mockery of com- 
mon sense. 

It is indeed certain, that, in pretending to confine 
the boundaries of incredulity, by requiring the be- 
lief of a few articles denominated ^^fundamentals,'' 
the Protestants have done little else than betray the 
greatness of their own inconsistency. For, in the 
first place, they have neither determined, what these 
supposed fundamentals are; nor, in the next place, 
is the determination of them even so much as possi- 
ble. In fact, how is it possible to separate objects, 
which are intimately linked together? In religion, 
there is nothing isolated. One truth reposes upon 
another, which serves as a kind of foundation to it. 
Its divine dogmas, — all of them,~flow, as it were, 
from each other ; — following each other in the nicest 
order, and uniting together in the most perfect har- 
mony ; so that, without ever finding in them the 
slenderest point of division, we may trace them, one 
by one, up to the bosom itself of the Divinity, — that 
ever-living and eternal source from which every 



130 

truth proceeds. It is impossible to deny any one of 
them, without being obliged, if consistent, to deny 
them all. Whence, the consequence is, that the dis- 
belief of all the mysteries of revelation is the direct 
result of the principles of the Reformation ; and the 
natural complement of this fatal system. Protes- 
tantism, until this unhappy effect takes place, is re- 
plete with contradictions. 

It would seem, that certain Protestant writers 
have felt this alarming circumstance. For, some 
of them, in order to preserve religion, have suggest* 
ed, that the best, or only expedient to do this, is to 
make it over to the prince, or the civil power ; and 
transform it at once into a political institution. 
But, surely, a resource like this, if it be not the 
sanction of Atheism, is, at all events, the approval 
of that degree of indifference to all religion, which 
approaches the nearest to it. '' It is certain,'^ says 
Jurieu, ^' that princes are born the heads of the 
Christian cliurch, just equally as they arc born the 
heads of the civil government. They are alike the 
masters of religion and of the state.'' Such too as 
this is the language of several other Protestant 
writers. Now, if such as this be the authority of 
princes, that they can ordain creeds, and establish 
modes of worship, according to the dictates of their 
own interests, or opinions, — then should men talk 
no more of the Bible, of revelation, and fundamen- 
tals. Creeds, when they are thus degraded, become 
a mere kind of tax, imposed upon the public, for the 
benefit of the state; and which the prince may ei- 



131 

ther lighten or increase, accordingly as the charac- 
ter of the times, and the nature of circumstances 
may seen to require; or as the caprice of his own 
fancy may chance to dictate. 

Thus, then, it is manifest, both from the testimo- 
nies of experience, and from the reasonings and in- 
ferences of the soundest logic, that the principles of 
Protestantism conduct inevitably, whenever menfol' 
low them up with consistency j not only to the produc- 
tion of every form of error, but to the general re- 
jection of revelation altogether ; and still farther, 
to an absolute indifference to all religion whatsoe- 
ver. Following up those principels with consistency j 
the mind becomes early perplexed, uneasy, and be- 
set with doubts. Unable to satisfy itself, it, ere 
long, concludes by the disbelief of all revealed mys- 
teries whatsoever. Thus it is, that faith gradually 
vanishes and disappears ; and with it, worship, pi- 
ety, and morals. Irreligion, or indifference, alone, 
remain :— alone, stand erect, amidst the scene of 
the awful shipwreck. 

But, at all events, I have said enough, in the 
foregoing pages, to excite the attention of the 
thoughtful and prudent Protestant; — enough even 
to engage the thoughtless themselves to doubt* I 
Ua-ve said enough to make them feel, that the neg- 
lect of truth, or a blind indifference to the interests 
of religion, are not less the melancholy pledges of 
future security, than they are the pitiful claims to 
any superiority of understanding. In short, I have 
said enough to prove this truth, — that, unless the 



132 

Protestant do examine and compare, with serious 
and impartial industry, both the grounds of his be- 
lief in Protestantism, and the foundation of his disbe- 
lief in Catholicity, he not only disobeys the strictest 
injunctions of Christian prudence, but violates, 
moreover, the most essential of his own leading 
principles. 

XXXII. There are various causes, however, — 
although I shall not enumerate them, — why the 
Protestant refuses to investigate the claims, and 
discuss the character, of the Catholic religion. One 
of these, — for I will just cite one or two of them, — 
is the ignorance, — the strange, the false, the prepos- 
terous notions which he entertains of our sacred in- 
stitution. For, although there be perhaps no sub- 
ject, that is more familiar to Iiim than that of ^' Po- 
pery ;'^ — none, upon which he dwells more delight- 
fully, and dissertates more fluently, — (it is the con- 
stant topic of his conversations, and the favourite 
theme of his invectives,) — yet is it true, that there 
is no one subject upon which his ignorance is more 
pitiful, and his notions more erroneous. The cir- 
cumstance is, unhappily, but too natural. For, not 
only is the whole education of the Protestant — (I 
speak with some exceptions) — from the very lap of 
the nurse to the completion of his studies in the 
schools, a system of misrepresentation of our reli- 
gion, but every thing almost in society contributes 
to burn still deeper upon his mind, the false and 
pernicious impressions, — conversation, the laws, 



133 

the pulpit, and above all, — still worse than the 
sword of persecution, — the pen, and the press*"^ — 
And, then to correct, or counteract, all this injus- 

* Gross as are the insults, and heavy the injuries, which we 
sustain from the pulpit ; yet it is not, I conceive, after all, the 
furious preacher, — not such men as the Cunninghams, the 
Moyseys, and many even whom I could name within the circle 
of my own acquaintance, who make it their Sunday trade to 
declaim, good men ! against Popery, — it is not, I conceive, 
these, nor yet such men as the severe Dr. Bloomfield, or the 
intolerant Dr. Burgess, that so effectually contribute, at the 
present day, to nourish the public prejudices against our re- 
ligion, as do the hosts of our light and superficial scribblers, — 
the authors of novels^ travels, &c. These, nearly all of them, 
are full of the pretended descriptions of Catholicity : and as 
their number is countless, and their narratives entertaining, — 
so they are in the hands of every body^ and universally read. 
Accordingly it is from these,— although they are written by a 
set of men who, in general, know no more of our religion than 
so many children ; — men who have never given themselves the 
slenderest pains to understand its tenets ; — men, often indolent, 
dissipated, and idle ; and, not unfrequently, mercenary and 
interested ;— it is from these, that the public now form their 
notions of our religion. Their tales are eagerly received as so 
many truths ; their misrepresentations, as certainties ; and their 
ridicule, as wit. It is not indeed, that, amongst the members 
of our church, there do not exist a variety of abuses, supersti- 
tions, frauds, vices, &c. such, unhappily, is the fact; and we 
allow it. But then, considering the immensity of our numbers, 
and the character and weakness of the human mind, can good 
sense suppose, that the case can possibly be otherwise ? Such 
evils are but in the natural, and even necessary order of human 
occurrences; whilst also it is true, that the best things are, 
often, the things that are most abused. And, then, ought 
not good sense too, to remember this,— that the alleged 
disorders, after all, are the effects, not of the observance, but 
12 



134 

tice, he never, — or at least, hardly ever, — gives 
himself the trouble to consult any proper medium for 
correct instruction, — neither any Catholic writer, 

of the violation, of Catholic principles ;— the acts, if you will, 
of the Catholic, but not of Catholicity ? And should he not 
again, recollect, that, if in our church there do exist many 
abuses^— still, along with these, there exist many perfections 
likewise ? The enlightened man considers both ; blaming, 
indeed, what is wrong, but not hence condemning the institu- 
tion. But, unhappily, both for himself and for us, — ^the 
Protestant sees nothing,~looks at nothing, — in our religion, 
but its abuses. 

It is a subject of curiosity, which often amuses the Catholic, 
—to trace the very different portraits, which the prejudices, 
and partialities, of our Protestant writers are pleased alter- 
nately to exhibit, when they pretend to delineate the charac- 
ters, and actions, of Catholics ; and the qualities and conduct, 
of the members of their own communions. Thus, suppose a 
Catholic be active and zealous, he is sure to be described as a 
bigot, or a persecutor; let the Protestant be active and zealous, 
he is, as certainly, a saint, and an apostle. Let the Catholic 
be pious, and attentive to certain exterior duties,— he is, 
forsooth, a narrow-minded, and superstitious fanatic ; let the 
Protestant be pious and exact in his religious observances. Oh ! 
then he is devout, and conscientious. If the Catholic be 
scrupulous, he is an artful hypocrite ; if the Protestant be 
scrupulous, he is holiness itself. In like manner, in relation to 
vice : - Let the Catholic commit a crime, and he is a monster of 
iniquity ; let the Protestant do the same, and his crime is but a 
trifiing imperfection. If the Catholic be wicked and corrupted, 
his vices are the faults of his religion, and the disorders of the 
■whole Catholic body ; if the Protestant be corrupted, Az5 cor- 
ruption is of little or no moment, being only the misfortune of 
the individual himself. In short, to believe our Protestant 
writers, the Catholic religion has no perfections; Protestantism, 
no defects : — the Catholic has no virtues ; the Protestant, no 
vices. 



135 

nor any well-instructed Catholic. He neither sus- 
pects, — as he would do in any other case of violent 
accusation, — that the imputations may be false; or 
that tlie charges are exaggerated. Imposed upon 
by the defectiveness of his early education ; — decei- 
ved by a set of preachers, who are, themselves, the 
dupes of ignorance, and prejudice; — cheated by 

And let the reader ag-ain remark, still farther, the force of 
prejudice and partiality. Thus, for example, let the most 
trifling hardship fall upon the Protestant, — straight the nation 
is in a flame ; and the Catholic is reviled as a sanguinary per- 
secutor; let the Catholic writhe under the agonies of persecu- 
tion, and the Protestant is completely indifferent to it. Thus, 
how few are the Protestants, who feel at all for the disgraceful 
and grinding laws which still oppress us ! Not our loyalty, not 
our services, not our bravery in the field, not all the torrents of 
Catholic blood, that have been shed in the defence of a 
Protestant country, can excite in the mind of the Protestant 
the slenderest feeling in our favour. Nothing, in his eyes, can 
atone for the crime of being a Catholic. 

In like manner, let the Catholic vindicate his religion, his 
vindication is deemed abuse ; let the Protestant insult and 
deride it, his insult and derision are looked upon as zeal. In 
our defence, the Protestant sees nothing but bigotry. In the 
injustice done to us, he sees nothing but interest for the public 
good. Thus it is that the grossest falsehoods are, every day, 
vomited out against us by a set of men, whose insolence is only 
equalled by their ignorance ; and whose ignorance is only ex- 
ceeded by their want of candour. And yet, because the in- 
justice is aimed at Popery, the whole is greedily swallowed, and 
as piously believed ; and not only indeed this, — but very 
liberally rewarded. It is with reason, that Count Le Maistre, 
speaking of the English, says of them : *' Jamais il n'exista une 
nation plus aisee a tromper, ni plus difficile a detromper, ni 
plus puissante pour tromper les autres." 



136 

works, which are the eflFusions of hostility, bigotry, 
and interest; — he lives on, calmly and imprudently, 
contented and secure, — violating, alike, both his 
own principles, which bid him discuss before he be« 
lieves; and the rules of justice, which command him 
to listen to the accused, ere he ventures to condemn. 

I do not say, that, having done this, — having even 
studied our religion carefully, — he will therefore be 
induced to embrace it. He may not do this : for, 
faith is the effect of grace. But, at all events, his 
knowledge will produce this effect : He will no more 
condemn or insult our religion; and although his 
sin may be greater, still it will be a less stupid sin 
than it is at present. For, then, like the angel of 
pride, he will choose between truth and falsehood, 
between right and wrong, with a knowledge of the 
cause. 

However, such, unhappily, is the case; — there 
are no disorders which it is so difficult to cure, as 
the disorders of the understanding. The passions 
of the heart may be soothed, and rendered calm. 
Conflicting interests may be reconciled, and enmities 
done away. All this is the work of time ; and time, 
by degrees, effects it. But, against the disorders of 
error, time has, in general, hardly any effect what- 
ever : because, still fostered by prejudices, and ani- 
mated by the passions which it engenders, error 
constantly goes on increasing, and never waxes old. 
Hence, therefore, it is, — from the fruits of igno- 
rance, generated chiefly by misrepresentation ; and 
from the disorders of the understanding, produced 



137 

by misconception, — that the Protestant refuses, with 
so much obstinacy, to investigate the character of 
his parent church. 

XXXIII. Another circumstance, which forms a 
powerful obstacle to this important study, is the se- 
verity of those restraints^ which our religion impo- 
ses upon the propensities of self-love, and upon all 
the disorders, and sensualities, of the human heart. 
Men, unfortunately, as our Redeemer observes, 
" love darkness better than the light.'' It was, ac- 
cordingly, this disordinate preference, that was one 
of the causes,^ — perhaps, the chief cause, — why, at 
the era of the Reformation, men abandoned the an- 
cient church with so much levity. That revolution 
gave them liberty ; emancipated passion ; and abo- 
lished all those severities, which are painful to flesh 
and blood, ^ Indeed, I am convinced, that, taking 

* One of the institutions of the CathoUc church, which because 
it appears humiUating is perhaps of all others the most painful 
in the eyes of the Protestant, is the practice o^ confession. On 
this subject, however, his repugnances, and objections, are the 
fruits of self-love, ignorance, or pride. For, in reality, amongst 
all our various obligations, there is not, perhaps, one, which, 
— besides being highly beneficial, — besides being a powerful 
cheek to vice, and a prolific source of virtue,^s better calcu- 
lated at the same time to promote,— or which does more 
effectually promote,— that peace of mind, and tranquillity of 
conscience, which constitute, in this life, the best feelings of 
human happiness. These are facts, which every Catholic will 
attest, who has piously frequented our tribunals of penance. 
They are facts, which many of the early Protestants in particular 
have acknowledged ; attributing to the suppression of confes- 
sion amongst the reformed societies that inundation of cor- 
12# 



138 

away froQi our religion its severities, — but, suppo- 
sing it to possess, at the same time, all its other di- 
vine features, — not only, in such case, would men 
be induced to study its sacred claims; but they 
would even, in multitudes, hasten back to their pa- 

ruption, which disgraced their partisans : insomuch that they, 
some of them, loudly solicited the re-establishment of the 
sacred practice, as the only means of recalling men to a sense 
of religion. They are facts, which some of our own Protestant 
writers have remarked ; observing, for example, that it is only 
since the disuse of confession, that the crime of suicide, — now, 
proverbially English, — has been known in this country. They 
still farther remark, that it is owing chiefly, as they conceive, 
to the use of confession, that the CathoHcs, beyond all other 
religionists, are distinguished for their habitual cheerfulness. 
But as attestations of the utility of confession, I will just cite 
the sentiments of a few of the men who are notorious for their 
hostility to our religion,— the members of what is called the 
*' School of Philosophy.'* Thus, for instance, Voltaire says, 
" Confession is an excellent institution,— a check to vice. It is 
admirably calculated to engage hearts, which are ulcerated by 
hatred, to forgive ; and to induce those, who have been guilty 
of injustice, to make restitution. It is, above all, the greatest 
preventive of all secret sins.*'— " What restitutions and re- 
parations,'* says Rousseau, " does not confession produce 
amongst the Catholics !"— " The best of all governments," says 
Raynal, " would be a theocracy, in which there was established 
a tribunal of confession, provided it were always conducted by 
virtuous men, and upon rational principles.'*—** How salutary a 
preservative for the morals of youth," says Marmontel ** is the 
practice and obligation of going every month to confession ! 
The shame alone of this humble acknowledgment of the most 
secret sins would, perhaps, do more to prevent the commission 
of a greater number of crimes, than all other motives put 
together, however holy these might chance to be.** 



^'1 



139 

rent fold. Between the Catholic and the Protestant 
religions, there is this very obvious difference, or 
distinction : that, for a man to become a Catholic 
commands very powerful strength of mind, — a spi- 
rit of mortification, and the willingness to submit to 
many arduous and holy exercises ; whereas, to be- 
come, — or to be, — a Protestant, requires neither any 
share of fortitude nor yet any degree of any virtue 
whatsoever. It requires both a spirit of liberty, 
passions, weaknesses, and so on. For, to be a Pro- 
testant, according to the correct definition of Dr. 
Burgess, is merely to reject Fopery. Whence, also, 
as I have before remarked, not only are all the 
countless sectarists of the Reformation, — no matter 
how absurd their tenets. — really Protestants ; but 
the unbelievers themselves, — the Socinian or the 
Deist, — are just as much so, as are the very pro- 
fessors of the thirty-nine articles. Wherefore, since 
it is thus natural for men to love liberty, and free- 
dom from all control, so also it is easy to under- 
stand, why they are averse to the study and cultiva- 
tion of a religion, whose whole order and economy 
are so designed and arranged, as to impose fetters 
upon every bad passion, and darling propensity, of 
the human heart. It is upon this account, — that is, 
in consequence of the various painful, and awk- 
ward, restrictions, which the wisdom of Catholicity 
imposes upon its members, — it is upon this account, 
that we occasionally, even now, behold the spectacle 
of a few unhappy and miserable renegadoes, — the 
victims most commonly of immorality, or else the 



140 

dupes of interest, or the grossest ignorance,— aban- 
doning our coramunion, and uniting themselves to 
the ranks of Protestantism, — not, however, as the 
believers in the established church, but as the belie- 
vers, most generally, in no church,'^ 

*The following facts serve to illustrate the tendency, and 
relative characters of the Protestant, and the Catholic, religions. 
They are obvious facts, which the inquirer, if he pleasC; may 
ascertain, without any difficulty. They are simply these,— that, 
whenever any Protestant bscomes a proselyte to the Catholic 
religion, he is always one of the best instructed in the circle in 
v> hich he moves ; and he becomes uniformly a more moral, and 
edifying, person than he had been before his conversion Thus, 
if he be a clergyman, it is some scholar, distinguished for his 
learning, and great abihties,— a Chamberlayne, a Best, a Tilt ; 
if an individual from the higher classes of society, it is one who 
is possessed of splendid intellectual acquirements, — a Digby, a 
Phillips, a Vincent ;— if from the middle, but still affluent, 
ranks of the community, it is always a set of persons who, 
remarkable for their good sense, have read, examined, and 
meditated, seriously ;— if even from the very lowest orders of 
public life, the converts to our rehgion are, with hardly an ex- 
ception, a portion of individuals who, in talents, character, and 
respectability, are superior to others of the same condition, 
who surround them. Such as this is the general, and almost 
universal, character of our proselytes to Catholicity ; whilst 
their conduct, corresponding to the heroism of their conversion 
(for, their conversion is sure to draw down upon them the 
persecution of their friends.) is remarkable for its steadiness, 
piety, and edification. They form some of the fairest flowers in 
the garden of our church. 

On the other hand, take a view of the apostates, who in these 
latter times have deserted our communion, and gone over to 
the ranks of Protestantism, They, most certainly, were not the 
foivers^ that adorned our spiritual garden, but much rather, as 



141 

XXXIV. A third objection, which the Protes- 
tants very frequently urge against the Catholic re- 
ligion, and which is another reason why multitudes 

Swift calls such renegadoes in his times, "the weeds cast out 
of it," Thus, if the apostate be a priest, it is, almost uniformly, 
some unfortunate and dissipated being*, who, tired of the 
restraints of celibacy, v^iolates his vows, and takes to himself a 
wife. If he be one of our nobility, or gentry, it is some thought- 
less or immoral individual, who, careless about all religion, or 
else guided by vanity, interest, or ambition, is solicitous to 
obtain a seat on the benches of our senate. If he be one of the 
inferior orders of the community, it is sure to be, as in the above 
case, either some unfortunate person who has lost all sense of 
piety, or else some poor, or stupidly ignorant, being, who, like 
Lord Farnham's converts, has been tempted from his religion, 
and bought over " by the Friday's bacon." Such as these are 
the ordinary deserters of our religion, — a set of very bad 
Catholics, who make a set of very bad Protestants : for we find 
by experience, that they, nearly all, upon their death-beds, 
struck with horror at their past conduct, return back to their 
parent church. From these few circumstances we may form a 
very correct idea, of the relative nature, and tendency, of the 
Protestant and the Catholic religions. 

" Another proof of the want of holiness in the Protestant 
church," says the Earl of Shrewsbury, after having enumerated 
several more of these awkward attestations, — " another proof 
of the want of holiness in the Protestant church is this: — that 
those who leave the Catholic communion for the establishment, 
invariably show by their conduct, that they do so, solely in 
furtherance of their worldly interests, and to enjoy a greater 
latitude, both of faith and practice. In deserting their religion, 
they almost always desert their morality with it. Yet, even 
then, they generally flatter themselves with the hope of return- 
ing to die in the bosom of the ancient faith. They say within 
themselves. Yours is the church, in which we will live at our 



142 

of them are withheld rom the very thought of its 
investigation, — is the alleged multitude, and incom- 
prehensibility, of its mysterious doctrines. This, in- 
case ; but we will return to our own to die in penitence, and 
peace. 

*' Far different from this is the conduct of the converts to 
Catholicity ;— evincing the purity of their motives by the severity 
of their religious observances, and by the example of disinterest- 
ed piety, which they exhibit to the world. No one scarcely 
has yet left us, who has lived well, and died happily. Hardly 
any one has yet sought and found us, who has not been a 
pattern of virtue while living, and a saint in death." 

His Lordship's observation, respecting the insincerity of our 
Catholic apostates, will be found strikingly illustrated in the 
conduct of that unhappy set of beings, whom we have recently 
seen seduced from their religion by the industry, and bigotry, 
of the members of the ** New Reformation." Not only in 
Ireland, but lately also in this country, societies have been 
formed, and very carefully organised, for the express purpose 
of withdrawing the Catholics from their parent church. And 
the consequence has been, that, by the aid of bribes, and 
pensions, and promises,— -and so on, — they did succeed in buying 
off a considerable number of poor and half-starved wretches 
from our communion. And yet what, after all, has been the 
conduct of these unhappy beings? Why, that, stung with 
remorse at the crime of their apostacy, they have, nearly all of 
them, returned to do penance in the pale of the church, which 
they had abandoned. ] am indeed convinced, that it is absolutely 
impossible for any well-instructed Catholic to become, under 
the present state of Protestantism, a sincere proselyte to any 
Protestant communion. Merely to ascertain what is the religion» 
or what are the doctrines, of the established church itself, is 
one of those riddles, which no ingenuity can unravel : whilst, in 
like manner, to explain the alleged delegation of its clergy, as 
founded upon their succession to the Catholic ministry, is little 
better than Si fable, which no impartial wisdom can comprehend. 



143 

deed, is an argument, which, besides being often ur- 
ged, possesses, moreover, a very powerful and per- 
nicious influence, not so much over the minds of 
the vulgar, as over the feelings of multitudes of our 
more polished and literary characters. 

That an objection like the above should be em- 
ployed by a set of men such as the Socinian, the 
Latitudinarian, and the Deist, — men who reject all 
mysteries, and the belief in revelation itself, — this 
is not surprising. It is but consistent with their 
principles. But, that it should be urged by indi- 
viduals or by those classes of Protestants, who, be- 
sides the general admission of revelation, admit also 
in their respective creeds a variety of mysterious 
doctrines, — this is a circumstance, — a piece of in- 
consistency, — which ingenuity would in vain at- 
tempt to justify. It is true, then, that the Catholic 
religion does profess, and propose to our belief, a va- 
riety of mysterious doctrines, — a series of sublime 
and awful truths, which no created capacity can 
comprehend, no human imagination penetrate. And 
what, therefore, in such case, ought to appear, — or 
rather, is — the consequence? Why, tliat so far 
from weakening the faith of the enlightened Chris- 
tian, the circumstance ought rather to strengthen 
and edify it. In reality, even in the natural order 
of things itself, is not almost every object a myste- 
ry to the human understanding? Insomuch that if 
we are to believe only what we understand, the con- 
sequence would be, that we sliould believe nothing at 
all. The heavens, the earth, the sea, life, death, 



144 

yea the merest grain of sand that we tread upon, the 
least particle of straw that is carried about by the 
wind, are objects incomprehensible to our reason. 
And shall we then, weak and little as we are, pre- 
tend to measure the ways of God, — his nature, and 
his attributes; the extent of his omnipotence, or the 
wisdom and plan of his designs ? On the contrary, 
our manifest duty is, to reflect with humility upon 
our own littleness; and, without presuming to re- 
quire of God an account of his inscrutable ordinan- 
ces, — simply to believe, be thankful and adore. In 
reality, the inaccessible height of his doctrines is 
one of the strongest attestations of their heavenly 
origin. A religion without mysteries, would be es- 
sentially a false religion ; — because it would neither 
present to us the idea, nor the feeling, of infinitude. 
A religion without obscurities would be even an ab- 
surd religion, or rather, no religion at all; — be- 
cause it would leave us in a state of complete igno- 
rance respecting the Divinity himself, who is man- 
ifestly far beyond the reach of all human compre- 
hension.^ 

* We are surrounded every where with mysteries. There is 
hardly one single subject, or object, in nature, that we perfectly 
understand. How little do we know of spirit; or even of 
matter, or its properties ! We can, indeed, measure the size 
of matter, and describe its form, colour, and so on ; but still, 
"we do not penetrate its qualities. We comprehend little or 
nothing" beyond its surfice. In like manner, we see the effects 
of nature, and can sometimes trace their causes ; but, we know 
not, either how those effects are produced, nor why they follow 
from such and such a cause. We see, for example, that seed 



145 

Hence, therefore, if the Catholic religion be ob- 
scure in its dogmas, it is only because it is divine ; 
—because it transports us into the regions of inj^- 
nite; displaying to our astonished sight an endless^ 

sown, soon produces, or becomes, a plant ; but, by what process 
it becomes such,— of this we are completely ignorant. Even is 
man himself an entire mystery to man. For, where is the 
philosopher that can describe, either what, or where, is the 
principle of life within us ? Or who is he that can account for 
the origin, and effects, of the human will ? If therefore we do 
not comprehend the objects of nature itself,— what wonder can 
there be, that we do not understand the still more sublime 
mysteries of religion ? The fact is that so far from objecting 
to religion, on account of its mysteries,— it is these,— it is its 
very mysteries,— that ought to excite our higher esteem and 
admiration of it. 

Indeed, take away from Christianity its mysteries,— and what 
then is it ! or where is its great use, or benefit ? Where even is 
the proof, or sign, that it comes from heaven ? In this case, it 
but resembles other moral institutions : and Christ himself is 
little else than an ordinary teacher, — his dignity lost ; his claims 
to our admiration lessened; and the chief end for which he 
came on earth rendered doubtful, and suspicious. For, if 
Christ had taught nothing more than what is human, he might, 
and would, have been looked upon, as nothing more than a 
mere human being. There could not, in such a case, have been 
any necessity of sending down from heaven a divine Being ; 
nor any reason why, after having attested only common things, 
he should have risen from his grave again. 

In relation, therefore, to our mysteries, what alone the 
Protestant should labour to ascertain, is simply their authenticity; 
that is, he should consider them as objects of fact^ not as 
questions of science. He should endeavour, by the rules of wise 
criticism, to ascertain, whether they have really been revealed. 
If they have, then, be what they may, they must be believed 
essentially. 

13 



146 



^- 



boundless perspective, in which the eye seeks 
vain for limits, which recede, and for ever retire, 
before it. Did our religion boast of dissipating the 
clouds, which hang over the objects of religion, 
as weil as over the human understanding, she would, 
by such act, proclaim at once her own insolence 
and falsehood. Hence the language, which she ad- 
dresses to mankind, is such as this : ^^ Study well to 
to know the truths, which the wisdom of God has 
been pleased to reveal unto you : but think not, that 
in this life, you are designed to comprehend them 
clearly. They are objects too bright for the human 
eye to bear to look on ; — doctrines too transcendent 
and sublime, for the narrow capacities of mortal 
beings to pretend to penetrate. In order, however, 
that you may attain the knowledge of them, and at* 
tain it with enlightened certitude,— the same wis- 
dom, which has communicated them to you, has at 
the same time prepared, and presented to you, the 
most satisfactory evidences, to establish their authen- 
ticity, — a series oi facts, and attestations, the most 
palpable, and adapted to the measure of the human 
capacity. These, — although they do not enable you 
to understand the truths themselves proposed to 
your belief^ — point out to you clearly what they 
are; and evince, that it is not less an act of reason, 
than it is a point of duty, to believe them. They 
conduct you by the hand to the sanctuary of the 
true religion, but they do not draw aside the veil 
which conceals its mysteries. Therefore, consult, 
and follow, these : for, this is the whole that reason 



147 

should do : Let your understanding yield to the obe- 
dience of faith. God equally, and with equal justice, 
demands from you the sacrifice of your understand- 
ing, as he requires tlie submission of the will.'' 
Such as this is the language of our religion, as it is 
in fact but the language of common sense. For man 
to pretend to penetrate, and measure, the abysses of 
the eternal mind ; — or to assert, as the Protestant 
does unceasingly, in relation to our Catholic myste- 
ries, — that such and such a dogma is " absurd, im- 
possible, false,'' &c. only because his feeble capaci- 
ty is pleased to think it so ; — all this, in the eyes of 
real Christian wisdom, is just as profane, as it is 
inconsistent. Jn religion, it is humility that forms 
the basis of faith, of knowledge, and security. Man 
fell by pride, and it is, therefore, by humiliy that he 
is destined^ and instructed, to rise again.* 

* speaking" of the Catholic doctrine o£ transubstantiation, Mr. 
Stanley Faber, in his " Difficulties of Romanism," makes the 
following sensible observations : (Would only that the generality 
of his other observations but resembled these !) " While 
arguing," he says, " upon this subject, some persons, I regret 
to say, have been far too copious in the use of those unseemly 
terms, absurdity^ and iinpossibility. To such language the least 
objection is its reprehensible want of good manners. A much 
more serious objection is, the tone of presumptuous loftiness 
which pervades it, and which is wholly unbecoming" a creature 
of very narrow faculties. Certainly God xvill do nothing absurd ; 
and can do nothing impossible. But, it does not therefore ex- 
actly follow, that our view of things should be always perfectly 
correct, and wholly free from misapprehension. Contradictions 
we may easily fancy^ where in truth there are none. Hence* 
before we venture to pronounce any particular doctrine to be a 



148 

XXXV. From the operation of the above causes, 
\ the reader will, without any difficulty, understand, 
why the investigation of the character of the Cath- 
olic religion is so seldom undertaken by the Protes- 
tant, upon whose feelings they are unceasingly pres- 
sed, with the most ardent and industrious care. In- 
deed, not only is it the natural effect of those causes 
to check, and prevent, the study of our religion, but 
it is also to them that we may attribute a large 
share of those inveterate prejudices, which, in this 



contradiction, we must be sure, that we perfectly understand, 
the nature of the matter propounded in that doctrine ; for other- 
wise the contradiction may not be in the matter itself, but in our 
mode of conceiving it. In reg-ard to myself, as my conscientiously 
finite intellect claims not to be an universal measure of 
congTuities and possibilities, I deem it both more wise, and 
more decorous, to refrain from assailing* the doctrine of 
transubstantiation, on the g-round of its alleged absurdity, or 
impossibility. 

'*By such a mode of attack, we in reality quit the true field 
of rational and satisfactory argument. The doctrine of transub- 
stantiation, like the doctrine of the Trinity, is a question, not 
of abstract reasoning, but of pure evidence. We believe the 
revelation of God to be essential, unerring truth. Our business, 
therefore, most plainly is, not to discuss the abstract absurdity, 
and the imagined contradictoriness, of transubstantiation, but 
to inquire, according to the best means which we possess, 
whether it be indeed a doctrine of holy Scripture. If sufficient 
evidence shall appear to be the case, we may be sure that the 
doctrine is neither absurd nor contradictory. Receiving the 
Scripture as the infallible word of God, and prepared with entire 
prostration of mind to admit his declarations, I shall ever 
contend, that the doctrine of transubstantiation, like the doc- 
trine of the Trinity, is a question of pure evidence." 



149 

coiiiitry, the Protestant is taught to entertain for 
his parent church. Protestantism, it is true, is the 
creature of animosity* And from this circumstance 
again, without needing to refer to any other, it is at 
once easy to account for all that rancour, which 
pervades the public mind, in relation to Catholicity. 
Protestantism, is the child of rebellion. It was cra- 
dled, and fed, and grew, by discord : it is, therefore, 
by the spirit of discord, and hostility, that it still 
lives. These are still the real principles of its life, 
and animation. These are the great levers, by 
which it acts upon the credulity, and weakness, of 
its followers. It exists, every where, without any 
real affection for its own doctrines ; or at least, 
without any rational conviction that they are divine. 
The proof of this is manifest ; since we, every 
where, behold its members varying in their belief, 
and daily altering their opinions. To all the count- 
less multitude of its sects, almost every thing is 
alike, and equal, provided only that it be not Catho- 
lic. Children of the same parent, offspring of the 
same principle, they all possess one feeling in rela- 
tion to each other, and one general sentiment in re- 
gard to us. They all live amicably amongst each 
other, notwithstanding that they respectively pro- 
fess codes of doctrine the most opposite and contra- 
dictory. They all insult and vilify us, — considering 
the Catholic as their common enemy, hating us 
from principle, and ill-treating us from habit, inte- 

13* 



150 

rest, and education.=* Thus, too, precisely it an- 
ciently was with the professors, and laws, of pagan- 
ism. These, all, quietly tolerated every imagina- 
ry form of error ; whilst they poured out all their 
indignation upon the Catholic church alone. Indeed, 
we have beheld the government of this country ex- 
tend even to its pagan settlements a degree of libe- 
rality and privilege, which it had long sternly re- 
fused to its Catholic subjects. But, the unfortunate 
truth is this : — Extinguish once in the minds of the 
Protestant public the hostility to the Catholic reli- 
gion, and there would soon be an end to Protestant- 
ism. Neither is this any secret to the ministers, 
above all of the established church. These illiberals 
know it well ; and it is for this reason that they are, 
some of them, so assiduous ; and labour with such 
indefatigable industry, to nourish the odious senti- 
ment. Hence, their calumnies, their misrepresenta- 
tions, and their lies. Hence, those insults, that ridi- 
cule, and those pitiful imputations, which disgrace 
almost every publication, and discourse, in which 

* " Chi offende, non pardona." Whenever men are guilty 
of rebellion and usurpation, they are always sure,— and the 
thing is only natural, — to be violent in their own defence, and 
unjust to the party which they have injured and oppressed. 
They justify themselves, by alleging a variety of crimes, 
disorders, &c. And the calumnies and misrepresentations, 
which they employ upon such occasions, are always the more 
violent and ill-founded, in proportion as the victim, which they 
have sacrificed, is the more innocent ; and as the measure of 
the wrong, which they have inflicted, is the more notorious and 
detestable. The lamb is, of course, always in the wrong with 
the wolf. 



151 

they pretend to describe, or refute, the religion of 
the Roman Catholic.^ [See Illustration, K.] 

XXXVL Wherefore seeing thus, how feeble are 
the arguments, and how groundless the pretexts, 
which withhold the Protestant from the study of our 
religion, let me, once more, suggest to him that 
piece of prudence, which I have proposed to him 

♦Nothing" can be more preposterous than the method by 
which the Protestants in general pretend to investigate the 
character, and claims, of the Catholic religion. It is precisely 
like the conduct of the man who, wishing to find out the source 
and beauties of the Nile, forces his way, at once, across the 
numberless branches of the Delta; where, soon, he gets lost; 
or it may be, miserably perishes. Either they study the nature 
of our mysteries, which are incom,prehensible ; or else they 
consider only the very objects which form no part of our reli- 
gion, and which even it condemns severely, ~ the abuses, and 
superstitions, which subsist amongst its immoral, and its igno- 
rant, members. When the Protestant, therefore, undertakes 
to examine our religion, his method should be this, — as it is in 
all regular systems : to begin from some fixed and incontestable 
principle, and to follow up, and apply, this wisely ; until step 
by step, from idea to idea, from reasoning to reasoning, he is 
conducted gradually to that conclusion, when the mind, if 
candid, is satisfied, and unable, any longer, to resist the force 
of truth. Religion is one of those sciences, which is a limine 
salutanda.. Here, we must begin from the beginning, — from 
the source^ and proceed carefully down the stream. Then every 
thing becomes easy, pleasant, and satisfactory. The bearings, 
the relations, the dependencies, &c. of one truth upon another 
unfold themselves, of themselves ; and without either risk, or 
difficulty, we go on, and advance, until the steam loses itself, 
ere long, in the great ocean of the Divinity. The adoption of 
this method conducts to Catholicity : ->the neglect of it to error, 
and incredulity. 



152 



before, — to begin to doubt; and doubting, to begin 
to examine. Let him, above all, weigh well the 
nature, and tendency, of his own leading rule of 
faith ; and compare this with the rule, which guides, 
and directs, the Catholic,— the former, made the 
source of every error ; the latter, the principle of 
concord, and security. Such, certainly, is the im- 
portance of the subject, that it should seem well to 
demand his most serious and attentive care. 

And let him, too, laying aside alike both his pre- 
judices and his partialities, — with a mind open, and 
anxious, to receive the rays of truth, let him take a 
viev/ of the distinctive features, which respectively 
mark the Catholic church ; and the churches, or 
sects, of Protestantism. Let him view the Catholic 
cliurch, — the rock of ages, the sanctuary of the 
saints, the abode of his own renowned forefathers, 
in which, linked together in unity, and as the child- 
ren of one great family, their days moved calmly 
on, in security, and peace. It is the religion to 
which this country owes the wisdom of its laws, and 
the excellence of its institutions ; to which it owes 
even its liberty, and its Magna Charta; — the reli- 
gion, to which indeed not only England, but the 
whole Christian universe^ are indebted for whatso- 
ever in them is deserving of commendation ; — soci- 
ety its civilization ; the public their morals ; the 
Christian his virtues; — ^the religion, which, where- 
soever it was propagated, checked the tide of vice, 
and established the reign of piety. It is the religion, 
which commands the rich to feed the poor, and the 



153 

poor to respect the rich ; — the religion, which from 
the treasures of its boundless charity, supplies helps 
for every want, and consolations for every grief; — 
the religion, which forbids the mere thought of sin, 
but which, at the same time, knows no sin but what 
it expiates ; because it applies to every sin the infinite 
merits of a divine Redeemer, In short, it is the 
religion, wluch, at once holy, venerable, and sublime, 
possesses, and dispenses to its members, every pos- 
sible principle, both of present and future happiness. 
Such, — notwithstanding all the insults which are 
daily poured upon it, — is the religion of the Roman 
Catholic. [See Illustration, L.] 

And let him next, — that is, let the Protestant, 
next, take a view of the Protestant churches. How 
diflferent and contrasted, is the spectacle, which 
these exhibit, from that which Ihave just presented ! 
Considering these attentively, he will, — if he be de- 
void of partiality, — feel, that they do not, any one 
of them, exhibit, or possess, those grand, appropri- 
ate, and distinctive features, which mark the true 
church of Christ. They present no claim to uni- 
ty^ — consisting, as they do, of a multitude of sects, 
all at variance with each other ; or if united, and 
fixed in any thing, united, and fixed, solely in the 
habits of instability : no title to antiquity^ — being, 
all of them, but the offspring of yesterday : no pre- 
tension to apostolidty ^-^theii^ pastors enjoying no 
mission, except what they have either arrogated to 
themselves,, derived from the civil power, or bor- 



i 154 

rowed from the people :^ not even any shadow of 
catholicity^ — composed, as is each sect, of but trifling 
aggregations, to any one of which it would be pre- 

* The established clergy, indeed, maintain, that they have 
inherited the apostolic mission through the medium of their 
Catholic predecessors. But, the good sense of the reader will, 
1 conceive, feel the weakness of this pretension, by making 
merely the following supposition :— Suppose his present 
Majesty, induced by policy, or because he believed no longer 
in the thirty-nine articles,— thought proper, for these reasons, 
to displace from their sees the present bench of bishops, and 
to remove from their livings the present body of the inferior 
clergy, — substituting, at the same time, in their room, a set of 
men of some different sect,— men of a quite contrary faith, andHI 
of opposite principles, — for example, a set of Independents, or " 
Baptists, or Quakers, &c., — could, I ask,— could such men be 
reasonably considered, as the proper, and canonical successors 
of the former; the lawful heirs of their presumed or real 
prerogatives ; and the associates of their character ? I am sure, 
that candour, and wisdom, would say,— ^v^b. Well, and yet such 
precisely as this is the nature of the claim, which the present 
established clergy now possess to the alleged title of having 
inherited the divine, and apostolical delegation from the hands, 
or through the medium, of their Catholic predecessors. Prompt- 
ed solely by policy, Elizabeth thought proper to change her 
religion. She, therefore, in the omnipotence of her power, at 
once unceremoniously discarded, and ignominiously kicked out, 
both from their sees and livings, the whole body of the Catholic 
clergy: and in their room she substituted a new order of 
believers,— men of a religion directly opposite to that of their 
predecessors. Such is the process, and such the title, to which 
the present established hierarchy owe their pastoral delegation. 
The case is parallel to the above supposed one. Whence, if 
the reader admit the accuracy of the inference, which I have 
conceived his good sense would deduce from that,— then should 
be also acknowledge the justice of a similar conclusion from the 



155 

posterous to attach the notion of universality : no 
well-established right even to the attribute of sane- 
tity^ — for, not only vi^ere their early founders a set 
of men notorious for their violences, and excesses ^ 
and who discarded from their respective institutions 
every rule almost, or form, of discipline, that is 
distressing to human self-love ; — but it is, moreover, 
true, that, pious, and charitable, and excellent, as 
are, and have been always, considerable multitudes 
of their members, — yet, seldom does, or ever did, 
the piety, and the virtues, even of these indivi- 
duals, exceed the measure of strict morality, and 
the order of nice decorum, ^ — seldom indeed resem- 
bling that austere and rigid sanctity, which marked 
the conduct of the saints. Such are the churches, 
or the sects, of Protestantism ; not exhibiting, in 
their various features, any one of those recommen- 
dations, which have been laid down by the divine 
wisdom, as the essential appendages, and distinc- 
tive marks, of the true religion. [See Illustra- 
tion, M.] 

Wherefore, I conclude: and it shall be, with 
those same observations, with which I have ushered 
in this treatise. — There is no science, that is half so 
important, as the know^ledge of the true religion ; — 
no benefit, that is so valuable, as the happiness of 
being united to it. The most substantial consolation 

latter. To me, at least, the pretension of founding the alleged 
apostolical delegation of the established clergy upon the divine 
commission of their Catholic predecessors, has always appear- 
ed, — though an artful,— an inexplicable fable. 



156 

of the pious and virtuous Christian is founded upon 
the wise conviction, that he does really enjoy this 
blessing: — because it is the established principle of 
bis salvation. Whence, this consequence is manifest, 
— that, whensoever any individual does not possess 
this conviction, it is his strictest duty to labour to 
acquire it. His everlasting interests are here at 
stake. For these reasons, then, let the Protestant 
endeavour seriously. — as, by his own maxims, he is 
strictly bound to do, — let him endeavour seriously 
to obtain this blessed assurance.^^^ Let him, for this 

*It is easy to understand, how the great herd of societ}',— the 
igTiorant, the indolent, the dissipated, &c. — reconcile them- 
selves to live on securely, and without any feeUngs of appre- 
hension, under any possible form of faith in which the accident 
of birth may have chanced to place them. Neither is there 
any difficulty in conceiving, how men are, too naturaUy, induced 
to cherish that order of religion whose profession is favourable, 
or to reject that which is unfavourable, to their worldly 
interests : — as, in like manner, again, we comprehend, at once^ 
how they willingly admit those systems which are pleasingJ| 
and condemn those which are painful, to their self-love. AIT 
this is very intelligible : and it is by these principles that we 
account for the zeal with which the established clergy- defend! 
their own church, and for the rancour with which they assail 
and combat ours ; —for the ardour, with which the latitudinarian. 
and the sensualist, assert the privileges, and the wide liberty^ 
of the Reformation : and for the aversion which they entertaii 
for the severe maxims, and restraining practices, of Catholicity! 
"Facile crediture quod amatur." 

The only circumstance which, in all this momentous busine 
appears unintelligible, at least to me, is this: how it is possible 
that any consistent Protestant, — that is, any Protestant, wh^ 
has framed his creed by principle, by the essential rules of '. 






157 

purpose, compare impartially, as I have just now 
suggested, the marks of the Catholic church with 
the features of the Protestant societies, — the unity, 
the antiquity, the diffusion, &c, of the former, with 
the confusion, the novelty, the contractedness, &c.- 
of the latter. Let him, too,-— impressed with cor- 
rect notions of the nature of Christian Jaith^ — 
which, in order to be real, ought essentially to be 
steady, and unchangeable, — let him, thus impres- 
sed, put to himself, and to his good sense, this ques- 
tion, — whether he can indeed reasonably conceive, 
that the divine gift ought not, therefore, to repose 
upon something better,— upon some surer and strong- 
er foundation, than that feeble, and tottering, thing, 

religion, by the process of examination, and the suggestions of 
his own judgment, (for this alone is consistent Protestantism) 
can really, and without any feelings of distrust, consider such a 
system true ; — can, with any thing like ordinary prudence, look 
upon it as divine, or as a wise foundation of his future happi- 
ness. Having formed his belief in this manner, he must, of 
course, feel, that it is a system peculiar to himself; and which, 
in all probability, not an individual in life would admit, besides 
himself. At all events, he must be sensible, that multitudes of 
men, far wiser, and more learned, than he is, not only do not 
beUeve such code, but believe, in many regards, precisely the 
reverse. Whilst, again, he knows, that a long series of ages 
past, as well as a long list of enlightened nations, have always, " 
and every where, professed a faith very different indeed from 
his. Under these circumstances, if he possess any slender 
share of humility or prudence, he cannot but be aware that, in 
all probability at least, he is mistaken; and that he is far 
more likely to be in the wrong than in the right. He mitsti I 
conceive, necessarily doubt. If he do not, I can only say, he is 
one of the most presumptuous of human beings. 
14 



158 

called ^Miuman reason/' — that principle, which is 
the source of all those errors, and profane opinions, 
which both vilify religion, and disturb the harmony 
of social life. Feeling, how liable he is to be mis- 
taken, even in relation to subjects the most natural 
and obvious, — he ought, hence, to be still more sen- 
sible of his inability to comprehend, and penetrate, 
the sublime and mysterious doctrines of revelation. 
Wherefore, let him lend an ear to the voice of the 
common Shepherd, calling to his forlorn and w^an- 
dering sheep, and inviting them to re-enter once 
more into the common fold. Diffident in himself, 
and in his own opinions, let him seriously consider, 
whether it be not better, — whether it do not appear 
to him an act of prudence, — to respect the authority 
of the universal church, rather than his own private 
sentiments : of that church, which was so long the 
asylum of the saints, and the school of Christian 
wisdom; of that church, to whose pastors Christ 
has said — " Go, teach all nations ; and behold I 
am with you, all days, to the end of the world ;'' — 
and whom, therefore, he has commanded us to hear 
and obey, even as we should bear and obey him- 
self. Considering these, and such like circum- 
stances, with candor, he cannot well help being 
induced, at all events, to pause. He will even be 
engaged to feel a kind of envy of the calm tranquil- 
lity of the Catholic, who, instead of being " driven 
about by every wind of doctrine,^' reposes under 
the shade of his immortal sanctuary, thus power- 
fully recommended, — secure, and undisturbed, — no 



159 

doubts to alarm his piety, no apprehensions to 
move, or distress, the constancy of his convictions. 
'' La religion Catholique,'^ says Terasson, '^ est une 
religion d'autorite. Et par cela menie, elle est, 
scule, une religion de certitude, et de tranquillite.'' 

If, then, it should so chance, that some prejudiced, 
but yet piously disposed enemy of our charch, — some 
virtuous Protestant, who is Protestant, only because 
he was born such, or because he has never reflec- 
ted seriously upon the momentous subject, — if it 
should chance, that such individual be induced to 
read these pages, let me, in this case, exhort him to 
examine the great question carefully. Examina- 
tion is what I have written principally to solicit. 
I have said little else than ^' Examine.'* And sure- 
ly, where theci§ exists a doubt concerning so im- 
portant an ob^g^^^ — to examine is a palpable obliga- 
tion. For, neither is any disorder more criminal 
than obstinacy in error; nor is any belief, accord- 
ing to the principles of Protestantism, reasonable^ 
unless it be founded upon conviction, generated hy 
investigation. 

Whilst, however, I thus recommend examination, 
let me too at the same time say, that I recommend 
also to whosoever is so prudent as to undertake the 
salutary task, — to enter upon it with a mind divest- 
ed of prejudice, and unbiassed by any Avorldly con- 
siderations ; for these, like so many clouds, prevent 
the rays of truth from beaming upon it. True 
Christian faith is the fruit of grace; — and grace 
descends only into the heart, that is candid and sin- 



160 |f{ 



cere. To minds, that are agitated by the spirit of 
contention, or that are obscured by the exhalations 
of the passions, — every sacred subject appears 
doubtful, and unsatisfactory, '' Sincerum est nisi 
vas, quodcunque infundis acescit.'' But above all, 
it is from pride that error chiefly derives its origin. 
It is this, that forms the great source of those re- 
pugnances to obedience ; of those desolating doubts ; 
of those numberless misgivings, which tyrannise 
over reason, and render it unwilling to embrace 
the truth. God has created us, in order that we 
raay know him^ and learn, and love, his ways. 
But, he has fixed the foundation of our knowledge 
upon the basis of humility. He has established 
the strongest certitude upon diffidence, and the best 
security upon the virtue of obedience. If, therefore, 
it be with these dispositions, that the Protestant is 
induced to enter upon the examination of our reli- 
gion, the effect will be, that he will not long remain 
unacquainted with it. That same Being who has 
created the immortal sanctuary, has not, of course, 
concealed it behind an impenetrable veil. He has 
not, as I have said before, placed millions of his 
creatures between truth and error, between right 
and wrong, without furnishing them, at the same 
time, with the means of distinguishing between them. 
On the contrary, since he has positively and im- 
periously commanded, that men shall believe, and 
profess, the true religion, so has he, consistently 
with such injunction, both in his justice and his 
mercy, taken care to render the means of discover- 



161 

ing the sacred institution even easy. Let then the 
dupe of prejudice and ignorance, — let the individual^ 
who now errs only because it has been his unhappy 
lot to have been nursed in error, — let these but 
adopt, and cultivate, the dispositions, which I have 
just suggested ; and the happy discovery, — we have 
divine assurance for it, — will, ere long, — will, even 
very soon, — be made. ^^ He that loveth the truth, 
Cometh to the light/' 



14* 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 

(A.) page 17. 
The Effects of the Reformation. 

The Reformation was an event, which inspired 
society, — or at least, its adherents, — with a new set 
of feelings, and opinions, upon almost every possible 
subject. It was a new era, introducing every where 
a new order of things ; rejecting the principle, which 
had, until then, been the basis, both of Christian 
faith, and of social harmony ; and substituting in 
its stead the very principle, both of religious, and 
civil, discord. It was the proclamation of the 
emancipation of human reason from the fetters and 
restrictions of authority. It, therefore, produced, 
— as all revolutions in faith must do, when they 
become general, — a variety of revolutions in other 
regards. It produced a revolution in morals, in the 
forms of worship, in the order of politics, in the 
relations of social life, and in literature itself. 

It produced a revolution in morals. Unwilling to 
be ever grossly inconsistent, men are particularly 
unwilling to be inconsistent in relation to what 
interests their self-love, and their passions. The 
consequence, therefore, is, that, as their duties, and 
obligations, are regulated by their faith, — so, in 



164 

proportion as their faith is feeble and imperfect, 
such also, in like manner, are their systems of 
morality, and their cultivation of virtue, more or 
less defective or orderly, imperfect or accurate, pre- 
cisely as their belief instructs, and animates, them. 
If, therefore, it be the case, that all kinds of creeds 
are established, or tolerated, so likewise, of course, 
will all kinds of morals. The same liberty, which 
consecrates the belief of all kinds of errors, and 
opinions, will equally appear to sanction, either the 
rejection, or the adoption, of all kinds of duties. 
For, if men are at liberty to deny, or to believe, 
what they please, why also, they will naturally say, 
'' Why are we not at liberty to act as we please ?'* 
The two privileges appear indeed inseparable. 
Accordingly, such as this was the reasoning, and 
such as this the state of tilings, on the occasion of 
the Reformation, The toleration of every kind of 
error became at once the source and toleration of 
every kind of crime. There was not a crime how- 
ever monstrous, not a disorder however gross, which 
immense multitudes of the first converts to Protest' 
antism did not, everywhere, — I do not say merely 
commit, — but ardently defend ; and defend moreover 
by the alleged authority of the Bible itself. Thus 
Luther himself, with his fellow reformers, allowed, 
— good-natured men ! — the Landgrave of Hesse to 
keep two wives at the same time. (It is true, they 
did this for the good of the Reformation !) In short, 
as Erasmus, and even the very reformers themselves 
acknowledge, the morality of the Reformation, at 



165 

its early periods, was flagrantly detestable. "The 
Reformation." says Chalmers, *'^ reformed men into 
vice." But as Erasmus justly remarks — How 
could the thing well be otherwise ? For, to tell men, 
as Luther and the Reformers did, — to tell the young, 
the ignorant, and the profligate, — that good works 
are of no avail ; that there is no liberty in the human 
will; that the Pope is antichrist; that bishops and 
priests are but phantoms and evil spirits ; that the 
doctrines of men are heresies, and the decrees of the 
church but acts of tyranny, — in short, that faith 
alone is sufficient for all the purposes and securities 
of salvation, — to tell them all this, — pressing at the 
same time the wild and licentious principles upon 
their minds with all the ardor of zeal, and the fury 
of declamation, — and yet suppose, that the effects 
would not be ruinous to morality, — this would be, 
not only unreasonable, but absurd. Even Luther 
himself, and his coadjutors, felt, ere long, but too 
late, the awful and awkward circumstance 5 and 
they endeavoured to counteract it by the aid of con- 
sistories, the powers of the magistracy, anew set of 
theoretical principles. However, the effort was 
made in vain. The tree bore its fruits ; and these 
ruits were licentiousness and vice, in every possible 
shape of turpitude and deformity. 

It produced a revolution in worship. — Revolutions 
in faith must of course, change the order of religious 
worship ; because worship is but the expression of 
the dogmas of faith. It is the nature of faith to 
manifest itself by actions; because faith is the 



166 

principle, and foundation, of actions. Hence, there- 
fore, the consequence is, that not only has the 
Protestant revolution destroyed the ancient forms 
of Christian worship, — but, as the belief of the 
Protestants is grounded only upon opinion, and as 
they have set aside the most affecting objects of re- 
ligious veneration, — so do they entertain very little, 
or no respect for the awful ceremonies of Christian 
piety. Their liturgies are, for these reasons, cold, 
dry, inanimate things, — excluding all those sublime 
and sensible signs, which are the language of feel- 
ing, and the expressions of finely-constructed minds. 

It produced a revolution in politics, and in the order 
of social life* — ^^ For, the rebellion,'^ Dr. Daubeny 
very justly remarks, "which originates in the 
church, never fails to terminate in the state.^^ 

For some considerable time before the Reforma- 
tion took place, the peace of society, and the com- 
forts of domestic life, had been regularly advancing 
to stability, under the auspices of religion, and the 
influences and inprovements of literature. The ac- 
celeration to these blessings had even, for some 
time before, been rapid. However, the Reformation 
came : and as it was a revolt against authority, so, 
in order to give an apparent sanction to its darings, 
it renewed in its own defence those pagan maxims 
respecting power, which, happily for the peace of 
mankind, had lain, for many ages past, neglected 
and unknown. "The political writings of the re- 
formers,'* says Chalmers, '' were what we now rep- 
robate as Jacobinical, — being equally irreconcilable 



167 

with the principles of established society, an incon- 
sistent with the pure precepts of the Christian re- 
ligion." In fact, it was they, — it was the force, and 
industry, of their incantations, that conjured up 
from its grave, where it had so long been buried, 
that demon of mischief, and rebellion, the pretended 
'^ rights, and supremacy, of the people/' At once, 
— at the call of the awful spectre, — the spirit of 
anarchy and independence seized upon the minds of 
their deluded followers, inflaming their passions, 
and exciting them to reject all the restraints, both 
of princely, and magisterial, power. The fanaticism 
of religious liberty produced, at once, the fanaticism 
of political licentiousness : and many of the best, 
and finest, portions of Europe became the prey to 
the anti-social system. Germany, France, Hol- 
land, Switzerland, &c. became deluged with torrents 
of human blood, and overspread with ruins. Many 
thrones were made to tottery and some, moreover, 
fell. In short, the bands, both of public harmony 
and of private concord, were violently burst asunder. 
Meanwhile, Luther, Beza, and the whole host of 
the reforming apostles, by the violence of their 
writings, and the extravagance of their discourses, 
urged on the multitude to new acts of rebellion ; 
not only justifying, but even sanctifying their ex- 
cesses. 

I say nothing concerning the political effects of 
the principles of the Reformation in this country. 
But we all know well what was their result, when 
once they had developed themselves, and become the 



168 

general feeling. The people, animated by them, 
now became triumphant, and supreme. All power 
was theirs : and ere long, law, justice, and the con- 
stitution vanished. Force alone, and the bad pas- 
sions remained behind. The sword of the leveller, 
and the fury of the fanatic, were every where indus- 
triously employed in the destruction of every social 
eminence: and royalty itself perished upon the 
scaffold, in the person of the most ill-fated of the ill- 
fated Stuarts. 

Dreadful as are these effects, yet are they, after 
all, but the natural consequences of the maxims of 
the Reformation, For, when once it is proclaimed, 
that " reason is the sole rule of faith, and the will of 
the public the sole source of power,'' then does truth 
become no longer any thing, but what flatters inclina- 
tion ; power J no longer aught, but what gratifies self- 
love. It becomes force^ directed by interest, and re- 
gulated by the passions : insomuch that wherever men 
have adopted the pernicious system, they would infal- 
libly, — if possessed of equal rights, but unequal in- 
terests, — mutually destroy each other. Such as 
these precisely were the effects, which we have re- 
cently witnessed in the instructive history of the 
French revolution. The leaders of that storm 
did nothing more than apply with consistency, and 
courage, the leading principles of the first refor- 
mers. And the natural consequence was, the des- 
truction of religion, and the subversion of social 
order. The same errors in reality will always, 
when the occasion offers, produce the same effects. 



169 

And should any revolution, — which Heaven avert ! 
— again take place in this nation, and there are too 
many reasons to awaken apprehension, — it will again 
be founded, and conducted, upon the leading prin- 
ciples of the Reformation, — the alleged *' preroga- 
tives of reason, and the rights of man/' 

It produced a revolution in literature, and the arts, 
— Before the Reformation, and ere Luther had ap- 
peared to disturb the harmony, both of public and 
private life, there had long subsisted an ardent spi- 
rit for the cultivation of literature, and the polished 
arts, — a spirit, mild, gentle, liberal, and set off with 
taste. It was excited, and diffused, by a class of 
men, who had sought after science amidst the anci- 
ent ruins of Greece and Rome j who had studied as- 
siduously the works of the most enlightened na- 
tions^ and even successfully laboured to imitate 
them. Every branch of learning had already be- 
gun to flourish under their auspices ; and assisted 
by the press, they had diffused abroad a blaze of 
the purest light. It was from Italy that the beam 
first parted, and it shed its rays over France, Ger- 
many, Spain, and various other nations. From the 
cultivation of literature to the cultivation of the 
arts, the passage, or transition, is immediate. So 
that these had already attained a degree of perfec- 
tion, above all in Italy, even beyond all the refine- 
ments of Modern elegance. 

The Reformation came, — and by the violence of 
its excesses, by its barbarous and harsh disputes, it 

arrested the progress of every literary improve- 
15 



170 

ment. Wheresoever its partisans prerailed^ the 
Muses, as if terrified-^and the Genius of the Arts, 
as if disgusted — fled from their hitherto -beloved re- 
treats, and disappeared. Men now began to attach 
themselves to little else than the discussions of con- 
troversy, and the propagation of a set of dry, and 
frequently very preposterous, systems. It was to 
the narrow circle of these subjects, that even the 
learned now confined themselves; and the war of 
polemics alone absorbed all the care, and industry, 
of the reformers. In their zeal to destroy Catho- 
licity, and to establish their own religions, they dis- 
carded every thing that is classical, or that is con- 
nected with taste and elegance, Melancthon owns, 
and laments, this circumstance to his friend Came- 
rarius. Indeed, except Melancthon, scarce do we 
trace a single Protestant, who, for a considerable 
space of time, possessed either any taste, any love of 
the arts, or any classical erudition, '' Ubicumque 
regnat Lntheranismus,'' says Erasmus, ^^ ibi est lit- 
erarum interitus." The same observation is made 
by Scaliger : '' Lutherani,'' he says, '^ Omnium im- 
peritissimi et clamosissimi/' Whilst, in like man- 
ner, speaking of the aversion which the reformers 
entertained for the fine arts, Forsythe observes^ 
" The Catholic religion is surely the friend to the 
fine arts : it rejects nothing that is old or beautiful. 
But had ancient Rome fallen into the hands of the 
gloomy Presbyterians, we should now look in vain 
for the sacred part of its ruins. Their Iconoclastic 
zeal would have confounded beauty with idolatry, 



171 

for the pleasure of demolishing both. They would 
have levelled the temple, and preached in the barn,'* 
The foregoing reflections apply, of course, to 
those periods principally, which are immediately 
connected with the introduction, and establishn^ent, 
of the Reformation. And certain it is,— no lear- 
ned man will contest it,— that the revolution of Lu*- 
ther, by narrowing the studies of the public to the 
mere subjects of controversy, stopped the progress 
of literature, not only amongst the Protestants, but 
almost equally amongst the Catholics. ^^In Ger- 
many/* says the learned Schmidt, '' it was even as 
much as two centuries before men began to breathe.^' 
However, at length, disgusted with tastelsss dispu^ 
tes, tired out with ceaseless wrangling, a few indi- 
viduals,'— a little portion of the learned,— were in- 
duced to pause. They felt revive in themselves 
the long-lost, and extinguished, relish for ancient 
literature, and ancient elegance^ and, ere long, 
they measured back their steps to the schools of 
taste, science, and philosophy. To do this, however, 
was the work of time, of pains, and labour. It 
was Bacon who led the way. But he did it, not by 
imitating the reformers, but by doing directly the 
reverse,— resuming the study of classic elegance, 
and recalling philosophy from those caverns, to 
which the tasteless violence of those men had so 
long condemned her. 



172 

(B.) Page 19. 

Controversy. 

Notwithstanding the utility, and in the case of 
error, the strict obligation, of religious controversy, 
— yet are there many Catholics, who, considering 
the temper of the public in relation to the Catholic 
religion, — the prejudices and bigotry of the laity, 
and the illiberality and violence of the clergy, — 
deem all such discussion, when addressed to these 
men, as needless, and of no avail. Without entirely 
adopting such opinion, I am, at the same time, con- 
vinced of this ; that, owing to one cause or other, — 
to prejudices, fanaticism, ignorance, indifference, in 
the great herd of society, and to the apprehension of 
disturbing the peace of a false conscience in multi- 
tudes, — the mere perusal of a Catholic work on the 
subject of religious controversy, is an event ex- 
tremely rare. Enumerating some of the causes of 
this inconsistency, Dr. Doyle makes the following 
observations : — " There are many reasons why re- 
ligious controversy cannot contribute to promote the 
interests of truth, in the present state of this coun- 
try. The first is, that the state has superseded the 
church, and became, itself, the depositary of re- 
ligion, — the framer, the modifier, and the defender, 
of the politico-religious creed of the nation. The 
clergy, who, in their character of churchmen, pos- 
sess no independence, are either a portion of the aris- 



173 

tocracy, who rule the empire ; or they live by that 
aristocracy. They obtain, and preserve, their ex- 
istence, not dum sese bene gesserintj but durante bene 
jdacito. The parliament can, independent of them, 
change the religion of the land, as Blackstone ob- 
serves. This powerful body rules every thing, — 
the church, the army, the navy, &c. It has its 
thousands, and tens of thousands, prepared to defend 
its decrees, of whatsoever character or description. 
And where its code of religion is assailed, all its 
agents are called into action to defend and justify 
it. Who will contend with the master of thirty le- 
gions ? 

^^ Again, this politico-religious creed, — which has 
been prepared, and enacted, and amended^ like any 
other act of parliament, — comprises but a few arti- 
cles. These articles, as the professing believers 
and teachers of them tell us, have, for a great part, 
gone into dissuetude, or undergone a silent reforma- 
tion : so that, at present, a man may adhere to them, 
as to a religious creed, without believing all of them, 
or almost any of them ; or he may believe them in 
a summary way, without believing each of them. 
Hence arises a freedom, or licentiousness, of judg- 
ment in religion, — the parent of numberless sects 
amongst the weaker-minded, and of irreligion 
amongst the immoral, and those styled learned. But, 
this freedom, this fanaticism, and irreligion, are 
diametrically opposed to the creed and practice of 
true Catholics. Who then can argue against such 

15^ 



174 

numerous and powerful antagonists, with a reasona- 
ble prospect of success ? 

'^ Next, from the depressed situation of Catholics, 
and the power, dignity, and influence, of the state, 
it is clear, that a Catholic, who exposes what he 
considers the errors of the parliamentary creed, 
must do so in very measured language, — whilst the 
well-paid advocates of that creed can indulge, not 
only with impunity, but with applause, in revilings, 
and abuse: and misrepresentations, of that religion, 
which the Catholic, abject and unprotected, vainly 
labours to defend. It is also worthy of observation, 
that such is the influence of pride, interest, and 
worldly feelings, that there are but few of those who 
read controversial works, and are capable of esti- 
mating the force of proof, that would, even though 
convinced, embrace the Catholic religion." 

Such as these are the desponding notions, which 
the above learned and eloquent prelate entertains, 
upon the subject of Catholic controversy. I share 
his opinions in part. But I think, at the same time, 
that, however unequal, in every worldly point of 
view, be the terms, on which the Catholic contends 
with the Protestant, — still, as there are individuals 
scattered up and down in the walks of life, who love 
and anxiously seek the truth, — so must the discus- 
sion of our tenets, and the exposure of the misrepre- 
sentations of our enemies, prove of some service to 
our cause. In fact, did only a single individual de- 
rive benefit from such discussions, this circumstance 
alone should seem to reward the piety, or repay the 
benevolence, which undertakes them. 



175 

(C.) Page 32. 

The principles of Frotestantismy the source of Socinu 
anism. 

The Catholics had always foretold, that the prin- 
ciples of the Reformation would soon, and infallibly, 
conduct to Socinianism. " And,'* as Gibbon re- 
marks, " their predictions are accomplished ; and 
the pillars of revelation are shaken by men, who 
preserve the name, without the substance, of reli- 
gion/' 

Speaking, in like manner, of the adoption of the 
leading maxim of the Reformation, and of the pro- 
gress of Socinianism, the French Encyclopedists 
make the same kind of observations : '^The rule of 
Protestantism," they say, " once adopted, it is im- 
possible to know, where the mind will stop." '^ II 
est certain," they add, <^ que les plus sages, les plus 
savans, et les plus eclaires d'entre les Protestans se 
sont depuis quelque tems considerablement rappro- 
ches des dogmes des Antitrinitaires. Ajoutez a 
cela le tolerantisme ...et vous aurez la vraie cause 
des progres rapides que le Socinianisme a fait, de 
nos jours; des racines profondes, qu'il ajeteesdans 
la plupart des esprits, — racines dont les ramifica- 
tions, se developpant et s'etendant continuellement, 
ne peuvent pas manquer de faire, bientot, du Pro- 
testantisme en general, un Socinianisme parfait, qui 
absorbera peu a peu tons les differens systemes de 
ces errans j et qui sera un centre commun de cor- 



176 

respond ance, ou toutes leurs hypotheses, jusqu'alors 
isolees et incoherentes, viendront se reunir, et se 
perdre, si j'ose m'exprimer ainsl, comma les elemens 
primitifs des corps, dans le sysfceme universel de la 
nature, le sentiment particulier du SoU pour former, 
par leur copulation universelle, la conscience du 

" The greatest benefit," says the candid and ho- 
nest Nightingale, " derived to religion by the ef- 
forts of the reformers, is that doctrine, which they 
so often disallowed to others, but which they found 
so convenient to themselves, of ackiiowledging the 
tinrestrained right of private judgment in matters of 
faith. And there is little risk in asserting, that, 
whoever proposes any contrary terms or articles of 
union, as necessary to be admitted, violates one of 
the leading and fundamental principles of the Pro- 
testant Reformation. But this would lead to down- 
right Socinianism, as the Catholics charge upon us* 
May be so. The charge is not without foundation, 
notwithstanding what some excellent Protestants 
have wTitten upon the subject. This dreadful con- 
sequence may follow\ It is a lamentable case. But 
there is no way to prevent it, while you allow the 
principle. You may issue your orders of synods, 
convocations, conferences, and acts of uniformity ; 
— you may enlarge, or curtail, the thirty-nine arti- 
cles;— you may even pronounce the seiatence of 
God's wrath and damnation, against heretics and 
schismatics : so long as you admit that groundwork 
of the Reformation, — the right of private judgment^ — 



177 

though you spend your strength in fulminations, and 
your skill in devising new terms of salvation^ you 
will only be laughed at by the discerning Christian, 
as inconsistent and intolerant/^ 

Accordingly, it is a fact, which no well-informed 
Protestant will deny, that the Socinians, in every 
Protestant country, form the largest portions of the 
Protestant communities amongst the learned: — God 
thus permitting great geniuses, very frequently, to 
combat his religion, in order to show, that his 
wisdom is not the wisdom of this world. It is the 
case, I have shown by the attestations of Protestant 
writers, amongst the reformed clergy in Germany, 
in Switzerland, and France : it is so very generally 
amongst the Protestant clergy, both in this country, 
in Scotland, and in Ireland. '^In this country,'* 
says Gibbon, ** the doctriiie of the Protestant church 
is now far removed from the knowledge and belief 
of its members ; and the articles of their faith are 
subscribed by the clergy with a sigh or a smileJ^ — 
'^ In Scotland,'^ says O'Driscol, " the Presbyterian 
church is reported to have lapsed into Socinianism.'' 
" The synod of Antrim,'* he adds, speaking of 
Ireland, " is said to be openly, and professedly, of 
this faith : and it is stated, that there are few of its 
churches which are not infected.'* All this, as 
Nightingale remarks, is " lamentable ;*' but, as he 
also observes, " there is no way to prevent i4:," so 
long as the principle of the Reformation remains. 

" For, why,'* says Dr. Doyle, addressing the 
members of the established church,—'^ why, and for 



178 

what cause, or by what authority, do you condemn 
the Arian, or Socinian, or unitarian, because they 
understand those texts, and such others, as prove 
the eternity, and divinity, of the Son of God, in a 
sense diifferent from what you assign them ? Have 
they not, according to your rule, a righty — nay, are 
they not obliged to follow the dictate of that judg- 
ment, in preference to all authority on earth ? And 
yet, you exclude them from the kingdom of God, 
because in the exercise of their judgment, or in what 
you consider the dischai'ge of their duty, they differ 
in opinion from you. Your opinion of them, if 
judged of by your own principles, is unjust, un- 
charitable, and unreasonable. You have divested 
yourselves of all right to repute any man a heretic, 
or to censure any man for being a schismatic. You 
have erased heresy, and schism, from the catalogue 
of vices 5 and have said with the false prophet, 
*^ Peace, Peace, when there was no peace.^ *^ — Re* 
ply to Dr. Magee. 

(D.) page S5 

Or. Burgesses Definition of Frotestantism^ 

"Protestantism is the abjuration of Popery.'^ 
This definition, although certainly a very strange 
one in theology, is, after all, perfectly correct. 
"Protestantism'^ is not a term, implying any system 
of faith, or any belief whatsoever. It is a term 
which has no fixed or determinate signification, — a 
mere nomen injinitum^ which means any thing, or 



179 

every thing, except '^ Catholic.^^ It is a term, not 
expressing faith, but the want of faith. Thus not 
only the Socinian, the Arian, &c. are Protestants^ 
but the Deist, the Jew, the very Atheist, — since 
these all protest against Popery, — are just equally 
real Protestants as are the believers in the thirty- 
nine articles, Bayle, indeed, a complete infidel, 
calls himself " the very best of Protestants,'' be- 
cause instead of protesting against certain articles 
of Popery, he protested, as he said, against them 
all. 

To the above accurate definition of '' Protestan- 
tism," the venerable prelate adds also the following 
clause, that '^ it is the exclusion of Papists from all 
power ecclesiastical and civil." These, too, are 
words which, if designed to express the nature of 
Protestantism, are as grossly illiberal in politics, as 
the foregoing ones are singular in religion. How- 
ever, they are not, like the foregoing, descriptive of 
the necessary or even general character of Protest- 
antism : for. Protestantism does not necessarily, or 
every where, exclude Catholics from the exercise of 
civil power. In many Protestant states, the Catholic 
is, equally with the Protestant, admitted to all the 
honours, and offices, of the civil governments. The 
words, therefore, only express, and define, the 
character of English Protestantism; — of that 
Protestantism which is the disgrace of our statute 
books, and the violation of English justice, and 
English generosity ;— -of that Protestantism which 
is dear to bigotry ; dear to such men as Dr. Bur- 



180 

gessj and fondly cherished by the majority of a 
narrow-minded host of clergy. ^' Protestantism is 
the exclusion of Papists from all power,'^ &c. But 
why, if the "Papist'^ be loyal; if he be a good 
subject; faithful to his king; fighting all the battles 
of his country ; obeying all its laws, and supporting 
all its burdens; — why, then, should he be excluded, 
any more than any other subject, from the exercise 
of civil power ? The fact even is, that they loyalty 
of the Catholic is more forcibly secured to the state 
by the principles of his religion, than is that of any 
Protestant sect w^hatsoever. *fThe faith of the 
Catholic,'^ says an eloquent Protestant writer, — 
Reid, — " binds him to obedience so severe, that 
some would call it hlind.^^ Yes, but he believes, it 
is answered, in transubstantiation ; and reveres the 
saints. Well, and what is there then, — I ask it in 
the name of common sense, — what is there in the 
belief of transubstantiation, or in the veneration of 
the saints, that can possible unfit the Catholic for 
the exercise of civil power ? His faith, in relation to 
these objects, should even appear to render him the 
fitter for it ; because as they are the nurses of piety, 
and exalted virtue, so they contribute to make him 
more faithful, and conscientious, in the discharge 
both of every public, and every private, duty. 

Speaking of the intolerance of this country, the 
same author, whom I have just cited, says, '' We 
cannot but observe, how much this kingdom is be- 
hind all other nations of the world, regarding re- 
ligion. Upon this head. Great Britain has obstinate- 



181 

]y adhered to the errors of antiquity. It was her 
high destiny to lead the nations in the path of civil 
and religious liberty: but they have now passed beyond 
hev; and she is in the rear of her pupils. England is 
now the hindmost of the nations/^ 

In relation to our penal laws against Popery, as 
they existed but a few days past, there is certainly 
nothing, — nothing even in the codes of the pagan, 
persecutors, — that was half so horrible, and distress- 
ing. " They were laws,'^ says the candid O'Driscol, 
" that sought their object through every variety of 
moral turpitude; which offered premiums for the 
blackest perfidy, and rewards for the basest pas- 
sions ; which tempted the son, or brother, to the 
plunder of his parent, or kinsman, and led him to 
perdition with a bribe. They polluted the sanctity 
of private life ; and tore asunder all the charities of 
kindred. It was made penal to teach the rudiments 
of knowledge ; and reading and writing were con- 
demned, as incompatible with the Protestant reli- 
gion. They took away the means of instruction, 
that the people in their ignorance might not know 
their rights. They offered a bounty for ingratitude, 
and crime. And having done this, they then slander- 
ed and stigmatised the sufferers for their ignorance, 
and brutality. The penal code was more cruel and 
detestable, because more cold and calculating, than 
the massacre of St. Bartholomew, or the slaughter 
of the Waldenses, or the more dignified barbarity of 
the Inquisition. It surrounded its victims, every 
where, with a net of cruelty; set a brand upon him 
16 



182 

which disgraced him in public and in private j con- 
sumed his property, destroyed his comforts, and 
visited him with ruin. It met him in all his dealings 
with his neighbours ; in the bosom of his family ; in 
the management of his property. It pursued him 
with a teazingand relentless persecution, — in court, 
in parliament, in his own household, on the high- 
way ; preserving his life, only to make it unsup- 
portable. If the penal laws had been rigidly exe- 
cuted, society could not have subsisted. 

" It is a mistake, however, to imagine, that the 
penal laws were never executed in their utmost 
severity, and barbarity. They were, frequently. 
And we could fill our paper with the details of the 
most hideous enormities, perpetrated under the 
authority of these laws. We could present a 
phantasmagoria of hunted priests, and ruined fami- 
lies, — wretches, w^ailing for their lost subsistence, or 
expiring in agony. We could exhibit the profaned 
and polluted altar, surrounded by the tortured 
victims of persecution.'^ 

''' I have read," says Doyle, '' of the persecutions 
of Nero, Domitian, Genseric, and Attila, with all 
the barbarities of the sixteenth century. I have 
compared them with those, inflicted on my own 
country : and I protest to God, that the latter, in my 
opinion, have exceeded in duration, in extent, and 
intensity, all that has ever been endured by mankind 
for justice sake.'' Such too as this is the opinion 
of Dr. Johnson, as well as of several other writers 
whom I could cite. Dr. Johnson declares, that 



I 



» 



183 

there is really nothing, in all the ten persecutions of 
the early Christians, that exceeds the barbarity 
with which this country has treated its Catholic 
subjects. Whence, speaking of our laws against 
Popery, Mr. Burke says of them, — ^^ Never did any 
thing more savage proceed from the perverted in- 
genuity of man/' 

It is, however, true, that some of these laws have 
recently been done away. Yes, but it is also equally 
true, that many of them still remain in force, — leav- 
ing England, as Reid remarks, "the hindmost of 
nations," in regard to liberality. For, although 
Protestant security is every where established by 
Catholic courage, and defended at the expense of 
Catholic blood 5— -although the greatness, and 
prosperity, of the country are made to repose upon 
Catholic loyalty ; yet are we, still, an insulted, 
persecuted, and deeply injured, body,— still treated 
as slaves in the midst of freemen. But, have we 
not, then,- received any rewards for our sacrifices, 
any remuneration for our loyalty? Yes, we have : 
and we are grateful for them. Well, and what are 
they ? Why, not so much, after all, any real benefits 
conferred upon us, as certain heavy injustices not 
inflicted ; — not so much any positive good, as the 
suspension of certain positive evils ; — that is, in fact, 
we are rewarded, because, we are not now, like our 
ancestors, hanged, fined, or imprisoned, because we 
profess the truth. And yet, I believe, after all, that 
there are still immense multitudes in this country, 
who repine at our few advantages ; and who, as 




184 

Moore observes, ''still sigh after the good old penall 
times, — considering liberality, and justice, to 
Catholics, as acts of degeneracy from their ances- 
tors.'' I think I could myself name several, — even 
amongst its clergy, — to whom this observation might 
be applied most justly. But, at all events, the spirit 
which is now displaying itself amongst a large 
portion of the established clergy, In their Orange 
and Brunswick clubs, attests the accuracy of the 
remark but too strikingly, and too unhappily.=^ 

*Such, indeed, is the persecuting spirit of these men, that it 
has excited the disgust, and called forth the severest reprehen- 
sions, of a multitude of Protestants themselves, — of nearly all 
who, in the best walks of society, are liberal, enlightened, and 
humane. Thus, speaking of them, — as well as of the assemblages 
which crowd around them, — Mr. Bushe, but the other day, 
describes them in the following language: " Whilst the 
schoolmaster is abroad ;— whilst the smith is leaning on his 
anvil, listening to the politics of the daily press ; —whilst all its 
excitation, and watchfulness, and anxiety, and discontent ;— the 
Caligulas of the pulpit are desirous, that the people (the Irish 
Catholics) had but one neck, that their monopoly might be 
decided by a blow. These are the sentiments applauded at 
their meetings. When these parsons, at their ferocious orgies, 
remind us, that they have three hundred thousand ready armed? 
— there are cheers,— loud cheers. When they say, — " Blood, — 
torrents of blood,— shall be shed,"— there are tumults of ap- 
plause. But, when it is said, that they are to be driven, not 
even into Connaught, but into hell, — the very welkin is rent 
with loud and continued cheering/' 

Such, too, is the general character of these frightful associa- 
tions, as it is given by various writers. " The conduct," says 
the Times, " of these domineering Jacobins is beyond belief 
and endurance. Blood is ia every syllable they utter. Their 



185 

" We are weary /^ says the Earl of Shrewsbury, 
^' of proclaiming our grievances. Suffice it to say, 
that we are treated with an inhumanity and injus- 

single argument is the sword. They never think of meeting a 
body of Catholics, but to slay them." 

" There is not," says O'Driscol, speaking of the same associa- 
tion, " there is not, in any nation, an instance of a more profli- 
gate and detestable conspiracy. They may be good Protestants . 
but they are not Christians." 

In reality, — and it is thus, perhaps, that we may best account 
for the conduct of these dreadful men, — to persecute the 
Catholic, is, in all probability, regarded by them as a Protestant 
obligation, or even as an article of Protestant faith. For, such, 
certainly, as this was long the common system of Protestant 
theology. " It was the opinion," says M'Crie, " generally 
entertained among the reformers." Whilst, again, as the Edin- 
burgh reviewers remark, "to persecute the Catholics was long 
considered as one of the most sacred of Christian duties," By 
these principles, inherited it may be from their pious ancestors, 
it is easy to calculate for the persecuting spirit of our present 
Protestant associations. 

I would not, indeed, assert, tliat the holy and venerable prelate, 
with whose name I have introduced this illustration, is the heir 
of the above dreadful doctrines ; or that he would rejoice in the 
re establishment of our ancient sanguinary code. Still, how- 
ever, considering the man's horror of Popery, and the general 
spirit of his writings on the subject of our religion, I cannot 
help suspecting, that such really is the case. He has, too, lately 
presented another testimony, which would almost seem to prove 
it. He has lately, in the ardour of his orthodoxy, been publish- 
ing a long-neglected treatise of our poet Milton ; in which, be- 
sides many other illiberal things, he contends, that the Catholic 
religion ought not to be tolerated, either in public, or yet in pri- 
vate The aim of the humane bishop in reprinting the miserable 
work must, of course, be at least similar to that of the liberal 
16* 



186 

tice, such as, I hope, clearly proves, (and for the 
honour of human nature be it spoken,) that our op- 
pressors have neither any knowledge of us, or of 
our sufferings ; of our principles, or of our services. 
We must look to other causes than a mere love of 
oppression, and cruelty, in our leaders. It is igno- 
rance and prejudice, faction and interest, which 
alone can uphold such a system of absurdity, and 
tyranny. My object, therefore, is to warn the thinking 
portion of the community from being misled by those 
false and malignant spirits who are so busy in poi- 
soning the public mind against us; — ^who dress us 
up in a hideous garb ; and put upon us all sorts of 
deformities of their own invention, till people be- 
lieve us to be any thing but w4iat, I trust, we real- 
ly are. Still, the injustice which we are doomed to 
suffer, from ignorance and credulity, is that of 
which w^e have, iJerhaps, the most reason to com- 
plain, because it is the easiest to rectify. For, while 
every other species of learning is pursuing a rapid 
and triumphant career,— whilst the press teems, al- 
most daily, with authenticated expositions of our 
doctrine, — -and whilst well-informed Catholics are 
to be met with at every corner,— is it not too much 
to be reduced to the alternative of being, either ne- 
glected, as unworthy of attention ; or of seeing our 

poet in composing it. But, if so, would not his piety deem it a 
piece of merit again to persecute us ? I think so. How fortunate 
it is, that, with notions of our religion like those of Dr. Burgess, 
men have not now the power to execute all their wishes ! 



187 

tenets, and our conduct, studied only in the wri- 
tings of our adversaries ? 

" When every other nation in Europe, in which dif- 
ference of religion exists, has cemented its power, 
and concentrated the affections of its people, by the 
most enlarged system of religious toleration, it is 
certainly most extraordinary that we, who pretend 
to be the wisest and most liberal of all, should, 
alone, continue a policy, which divides, instead of 
uniting; — which irritates, instead of conciliating; 
and which weakens, where it ought to strengthen. 
That in England, — that far-famed garden of liber- 
ty, — the baneful weed of intolerance should flourish 
in such rank luxuriance ; in England, where a hun- 
dred different religions have found their way, and 
where there is no limit to the intrusion of new ones ; 
— that one religion alone should be proscribed, and 
that the mother of the religion of the state, the foun- 
dress of all her institutions, and the nurse of all 
her liberties, — is an enigma which no ingenuity can 
solve, unless we put it down as the effect of consum- 
mate bigotry/' 

Thus, then, it is, that Dr. Burgess's definition of 
Protestantism is as illiberal in politics, as it is ab- 
surd in theology. It is, indeed, ^' an enigma,'' which 
bigotry only — '' consummate bigotry," — can solve. 
As for policy, — enlightened policy is founded always 
upon justice, and moderation. It is neither suspi- 
cious, nor unkind. Its very prudence is not that 
dark, foreboding thing, that watches against dan- 
gers, or that trembles at accidents, which merely 



188 

may take place. It calculates only upon rational 
probabilities; — not weighing phantoms, and visions, 
in the same scale with facts; nor balancing possible 
disloyalty against manifest and steady loyalty. It 
is, on the contrary, generous, liberal, and humane. 
Every system of politics which, above all in these 
days, is not grounded upon these virtues, is false. 
These are the objects which form the very first cal- 
culation of the prudent legislator. They are the 
fixed points, — the polar star, — towards which the 
eye of the enlightened politician is always, — or 
at least always should be, directed. If, happily, 
such only as this were the case in our regard, not 
only would the injustices soon cease, which have so 
lung assailed us, but our complete emancipation 
would take place to-morrow. 

(E.) page 49. 

The Difficulties^ Sfc, of the Scriptures. 

" Disputes,'^ says St. Austin, '' must be endless, 
where men appeal only to the Scriptures to decide 
them. Each party may grant and deny, and deny 
and grant, for ever. The victory, in all such con- 
tests, must always continue doubtful : and the only 
effect will be, that each side will claim it equally, 
and remain the more obstinately fixed, each, in their 
own opinions. And what, therefore, is the method, 
which, in such case as this, men properly ought to 
follow ? Why, they should seek out the persons, to 
whose custody the depositura of faith has been in- 



189 

trusted, — the men, to whom the Scriptures them- 
selves belong, — the men, from whom, and by whom, 
Christianity has come down to us. It is only from 
them, that w^e shall have, both the true Scriptures, 
and the true sense of the Scriptures. In Comment. 
Imo. 

" In order,'^ says Claude (in his Defence of the 
Reformation,) '^ in order to understand the Scrip- 
tures, there is, I candidly acknowledge it, a great 
many obstacles to be removed ; a great many diffi- 
culties to be overcome. The terms are to be weigh- 
ed exactly ; the style is to be examined ; the reason- 
ings are to be considered ; similar expressions to be 
compared J dissimilar passages attentively looked 
into ; the sense of obscure and ambiguous sentences 
penetrated; the connexions of the discourse attended 
to, as it refers to such and such an object, or to such 
and such an end. For these purposes, it is necessary 
to know, how to distinguish the apocryphal from 
the canonical books ; — necessary to understand the 
original languages, in order to be able to judge of 
the accuracy of the translations — necessary, more- 
over, to consult the works of interpreters. All this, 
no doubt, requires much care, much study, and ap- 
plication : insomuch that to do it well, the whole life 
of man is not too long. Nay, I will even add, — it 
is too short; and that all human strength is too 
feeble to understand the sacred volumes, which are 
an infinite source of mysteries, and heavenly truths.'' 

Such as this is the opinion of one of the most dis- 
tinguished defenders of the cause of Protestantism, 



190 

in a work composed professedly and directly in its 
defence. Whence also, in his treatise on the '^ True 
System of Religion," he acknowledges, that the 
method of finding out the truth by the private exami- 
nation of the Scriptures, is "absurd, ridiculous, im- 
possible, and wholly exceeding the capacities of the 
public.'' 

I could cite a multitude of passages similar to 
those of Claude, extracted from the works of many, 
both of our own, and of foreign, Protestant writers, 
— all admitting, that the circumstance of wisely un- 
derstanding the sacred Scriptures is far beyond the 
reach, and completely removed from the means, and 
abilities, of mankind in general. Thus, for exam- 
ple. Dr. Barrow, in his Bampton Lecture, makes 
the following just observations : '' It is not possi- 
ble,'' he says, '^to prove, that in language the most 
familiar to us, any given number of interpreters an- 
nex precisely the same idea to the same simple term. 
How diiFerently, then, may different men be reasona- 
bly expected to understand the general and compre- 
hensive principles of morality, or the mysterious 
doctrines of theology, contained in the Christian 
revelation ! The truths of our religion are convey- 
ed to us in the language of a distant age, and coun- 
try; and consequently, by translations only, can 
they be known to the great majority of mankind. 
They are expressed in terms, alluding to the customs 
and manners of the times, to peculiar modes of think- 
ing and acting, now known by little else than the 
allusions themselves. They are to be collected from 



191 

a variety of treatises, historical, prophetic, moralj 
and religious, written by different authors, at very 
distant periods of time. No wonder, then, that so 
many theological controversies have begun or ended 
in mere dispute about the meaning of words. No 
wonder that the upright, and the pious, and even the 
learned, should have been led by mistaken interpre- 
tations to hold mistaken doctrines/^ 

In like manner the present Bishop of Durham, 
Dr. Van Mildert, in his Bampton Lecture, writes 
thus : ^' Does not every sect, or denomination, of 
Christians maintain, that it has the sanction of 
Scripture for its creed ? And how could this be, if 
some did not ground their interpretations of it upon 
erroneous principles? The fact speaks for itself; 
and shows, that whatever some may dream of the 
facility of extracting from the Scriptures a correct 
and coherent system of divine truth, this is hardly 
to be effected, without such qualifications and attain- 
ments, as we shall in vain look for among a con- 
siderable portion of mankind. A general knowledge 
of the principles of grammar and criticism, and an 
acquaintance with the idioms of language in which 
any work is written, are, in every instance, indis- 
pensable. Commentators, harmonists, philologists, 
all must be called in to enable us thoroughly to ana- 
lyse or to combine, rightly to divide or to compare, 
spiritual truths. To neglect these, is virtually to 
neglect the means of profiting by the Bible," 

The language of Bishop Mant, in his Bampton 
Lecture, is similar to the above. " Whilst,'' he 



192 

says, " whilst we regard the Scriptures, as the only 
infallible criterion of sound doctrine, I should add a 
salutary caution in the use of them. It is the duty 
of every Christian, and it is the privilege of every 
Protestant, to search the Scriptures. But it is not 
every man who is duly qualified to explain them to 
advantage, * Scripture,' said a very learned man 
(Hales), ' is given to all to learn ; but to interpret 
only to few.' In order to understand the Scriptures, 
not only much zeal and diligence are necessary, but 
also much study in preparatory exercises ; much 
care in comparing them ; much judgment in apply- 
ing them ; much discrimination in distinguishing 
between objects of a limited and those of a universal 
import; much humility and sobriety of mind in ex- 
plaining the more mysterious points of doctrine ; 
and especially a freedom from all prepossession." 

These few concessions,* as well as the reasons ap- 
pended to them, ought, I conceive, to appear suffi- 
cient to convince any sober-minded individual, that 
the alleged privilege of allowing all men to interpret 
the divine volume,— although the very basis of Pro- 
testantism, — is, after all, an absolute absurdity. 
Even the very reformers themselves, — Luther, Cal- 
vin, and many of their learned coadjutors, acknow- 
ledge frequently even their inability to understand 
the sacred text ; and on account of its obscurity, re- 
jected from their new canon several books, which 
had hitherto been regarded as inspired. However, 
it was the circumstance of laying open the Bible to 
ally and of bidding all to interpret it, — it was this 



193 

circumstance, which, by flattering the public, and 
creating confusion,— contributed, perhaps beyond 
any other cause, to the progress and establishment 
of the Reformation. 

1 he errors, indeed, and the confusion, which at 
once resulted from the " glorious privilege," — al- 
though thus beneficial to that great revolution, — 
were at the same time such as ought to have induced 
piety to believe, that it could not well be considered 
as the gift, and dictate, of the eternal wisdom. Its 
effects were early foreseen, and lamented, by its very 
authors. Hence that emphatic exclamation, already 
cited, of Melancthon : ^* Good God ! what a tragedy 
have we not prepared for posterity !'' Speaking of 
some of those effects, the learned Walton, in the 
preface to his Polyglot, observes : '^ Aristarchus 
once could hardly find seven wise men in Greece. 
But, amongst Protestants, with difficulty could you 
find as many fools. All Protestants are doctors ; 
all divinely learned. The veriest idiot, or mechanic, 
preaches up his dreams, as the pure word of God. 
The abysses of hell seem to hare been opened ; and 
emitting a smoke, have darkened the heavens, and 
taken from the stars their light. The locusts, armed 
with stings, swarm every where; — an immense 
multitude of sects, and heretics, reviving old errors, 
and inventing monstrous ones of their own. These 
have filled our cities, villages, camps, houses; nay, 
our churches too, and our pulpits : and they lead 
the poor deluded people after them to the pit of per- 
dition." 

17 



In liKC 'manner, speaking of the earlier periods oM 
the Reformation, Southey remarks, •' The BibiM 
gave occasion for evil. Presumptuous and ignoran^ 
people no sooner read, than they took upon them- 
selves to expound it. They interrupted the church- 
service by thus holding forth ; discussed points of 
Scripture in ale-houses, and taverns; quarrelled 
over them, &c. Those insane opinions were also 
abroad, which struck at the root of all authority, 
civil and ecclesiastical; and of all social order. 
Because the Bible Vtas in English, they believed it 
was now on a level with their capacities, and that 
in all parts and points they understood it." Such as 
these were the fruits which, at the earlier periods of 
the Protestant revolution, grew out of the presumed 
right which men, all possess of interpreting the sa- 
cred volume. 

At present, if the mischiefs arising from this al- 
leged prerogative be less gross, and disorderly, — 
less hostile to the peace and order of social life, than 
they were formerly, — still they are even now, in the 
eyes of Christian piety, truly awful, and deplorable ; 
— alike, as at the times just alluded to, opposed to 
the dictates of truth, and repugnant to the maxims 
of wise religion. We see, every where around us, 
as I have said so often, even amongst the better-in- 
structed readers of the Bible, a scene of errors and 
confusion, of folly and fanaticism; — errors in as 
many forms almost, as there are varieties in the hu- 
man character. Indeed, as many of the Protestant 
writers themselves attest and lament, the divine 



195 

book is so perverted, as to be rendered the very in- 
strument, not only of error and dissension, but of 
irreligion and impiety. " Instead of searching the 
Scriptures,'^ say the writers of the British Critic, 
" as a rule of faith and conduct, the fashion of the 
present day is, to make them a pretence for dissen- 
sion. In those dissensions, every heresy will have 
its advocate. And with whatever rapidity one false 
doctrine spreads, with the same rapidity, when the 
tide turns, will its opposite error run in.'' — " To 
such an extent," says Archdeacon Canibridge, '^has 
the diabolical practice of spreading irreligion been 
carried, that it is well known, evening schools are 
established, in which both children and adults are 
instructed in reading : and the Bible is put into their 
hands for the express purpose of perverting the di- 
vine truths it unfolds; and training them to treat its 
contents with ridicule, and contempt." (Charge.) 

Wherefore, very forcibly impressed with a sense 
of the many evils, which flow from the unlimited cir- 
culation of tlie sacred volume, and from the " glori- 
ous" right, which every Protestant enjoys, of inter- 
preting it by the dictates of his own understanding, 
— impressed with these inconveniences, there have 
always been, — and there are still, — many Protest- 
ant writers, who, — with more prudence and good 
sense, than consistency, — have severely condemned 
the twofold privilege. " The unrestricted liberty 
of Protestants," says Archbishop Bramhall, " of 
reading the Bible, is more injurious to religion than 
the restraints of the Catholics." Selden even de- 



196 

dares, that " the two words, ^Search the Scriptures,' 
have undone the world.'^ The language at pre- 
sent of several of the members of the established 
church is hardly less impressive. They own, that 
the general and indiscriminate reading of the Bible 
has proved, not only ruinous to faith, but destruc- 
tive to public morals. Dr. Maltby contends, that 
out of the sixty-six sacred books, wiiich form the ca- 
non of the national church, — only seven of the Old, 
and eleven of the New, Testament are fit for general 
circulation. In reality, why should it be supposed, 
that men understand the Bible, — the most obscure of 
all books, — better than they do any other work? 
And if they do not understand, — why then invite, — 
nay, even command them to explain it ? Error, 
doubt, and incredulity, must be the necessary results 
of so wide and strange a privilege. '^ The Socini- 
ans," says the British Critic, '' are so convinced, 
that the tendency of the Bible society is hostile to 
the church, that they are willing, even though it 
circulates the authorised version of the Scriptures, 
to give it their support. This they consider a 
temporary sacrifice, made to obtain the greater ob- 
ject, — the ruin of the establishment, by the dividing 
processes of the Bible Society.'' Such too as these 
are the sentiments expressed by Dr. Norris, in his 
letter to Lord Liverpool : " We conscientiously 
believe the Bible Society to be an institution fraught 
with danger, not only to our own church, but to the 
best interests of Christian truth, and unity, through- 
out the world.'' Thus, it is admitted, that the prin- 



197 

ciple, which alone constitutes the religion of the 
Protestant, (for '' the Bible, and the Bible only/^ it 
is triumphantly urged, ^' is the religion of the Pro- 
testant/') constitutes, at the same time, the irreligion 
of every sect of heresy, and the basis of the impiety 
of the schools of incredulity. 

(F.) Page 52. 

The Bible Society. 

Speaking of the conduct, &c. of this Society, Dr. 
Doyle makes the following reflections on it : — " The 
types sweat, the press teems, vessels are freighted, 
for it. And all to no purpose. It derives an im- 
mense trade ; profitable, no doubt, to many, in Bi- 
bles, and missionaries. It squanders hundreds of 
thousands upon expeditions more senseless than the 
most foolish of Sir Walter Raleigh's ; and, like that 
pirate, it repays its dupes with reports of what never 
had any existence. It would be endless to recount 
the delusions which are practised by the mission- 
aries in this regard. • .Thus it is, that the English 
people are gulled out of their money. Thus it is, 
that fortunes are made for the printers, and book- 
sellers, and itinerant charlatans. As to the notable 
scheme of the Irish Bible, — that is too absurd to 
need exposure. But, it answers the purpose of cheats 
and hypocrites. 

" We, never yet, have been furnished with a proof, 

that these societies have converted a single tribe, or 

a people, or a nation, to the faith :— no, not one. 
17* 



198 

And what is more,— it is impossible they should. 
They may make many hypocrites, and cause thou- 
sands, who are already tossed about by every wind 
of doctrine, to exchange one error for another. They 
may count many converts, such as a certain distin- 
guished nobleman, on their lists ; and induce many 
old maids to exchange their monkeys, or lapdogs, 
for the Bible ; but, it is quite impossible, they should 
ever propagate the kingdom of God upon the earth. 

^^ I recollect, that, when the Chartar of the East- 
India Company was last renewed, Warren Hastings 
gave in evidence before a committee of the House of 
Commons, that, during his government in the East, 
Catholic missionaries alone made converts. . . I have 
conversed with several respectable and disinterested 
persons who had spent many years in India; and 
from all the information, I have been able to collect 
from these various sources, I am convinced, that 
the state of the missions in that country is substan- 
tially the same as it was in the time of Warren 
Hastings. The only converts made by the mission- 
ary Societies, (for, the Bibles have made none at 
all,) are some few Hindoos who had lost their caste, 
and who listen for hire to the preaching of those, 
who pay them. 

^' Then, as to their labours in Christian coun- 
tries, — they tell us of Russia, and of their immense 
manufactory in that country j and yet, I doubt 
whether they have converted a single Cossack, or 
boor. And if they did, they would only take them 
from a schismatical churchy to no church at all. 



199 

In Germany, and Switzerland, amongst the Pro- 
testant churches, they are quite at home. Yes, in 
these countries, where that infidelity, which Toland, 
Tyndal, and Bolingbroke, first introduced from 
England to the continent, and which was propagated 
with such malignant perseverance by their disciple 
Bayle, competes with a frightful fanaticism, so that 
one knows not, which of them will gain the ascen- 
dency. 

^' In France, these Societies are abetted only by 
the Calvinists, and the infidels. And it is a fact, 
of which I have been informed by a gentleman, of 
whose veracity and knowledge of the matter I can 
have no doubt, that the Bible has been circulated in 
that country by the very men, who lately published 
cheap editions of Rousseau's Emile, and of the 
Pucelle D'Orleans, for the purpose of corrupting 
youth. 

" Wherever the reader of the Bible is not regula- 
ted by a salutary discipline such is ours, it leads a 
great portion of the people necessarily to fanaticism, 
or to infidelity. The French infidels know this 
well; and hence their alliance with the Bible So- 
cieties. 

*'But, as to the progress of these societies amongst 
Catholics, whether in France, or in any other coun- 
try on the continent, it is precisely the same as on 
the banks of the Shannon, or the hills of Killarney. 
And all they state to the contrary is a collection of 
falsehood, transmitted home, or manufactured here, 



200 

by men, who fare sumptuously every day on the fruit 
of these their unhallowed labours. 

" As a general conclusion from the foregoing ob- 
servations, it seems to me, — Ist, That these socie- 
ties are embarked in propagating an intolerable 
error, by seeking to introduce the indiscriminate 
perusal of the sacred Scriptures, without note or 
comment; and substituting a chaos of undisciplined 
opinion, for the wisdom, and order, and power, of 
tlie church of God; — 2dly, It appears to me, that 
their labours, so far from being in accordance with 
the spirit of the Christian religion, are calculated 
to subvert it, and to plant in its room fanaticism, or 
infidelity, — Sdly, I am clearly of opinion, that these 
labours have been and must continue fruitless, 
.whether in converting infidels, or in disturbing Ca- 
tholicy ; whilst they have increased the confusion 
of the Protestant churches, and may ultimately sub- 
vert them altogether/' 

(G.) Page 75. 

Protestant Inconsistencies y in relation to Authority* 

If we look at all the various organised establish- 
ments of the Reformation, we shall find, that there 
is not one amongst them all, that has not systemati- 
cally violated its own leading maxims, by the im- 
position of oaths, subscriptions, tests, creeds, ex- 
communications, statutes, &c. Thus the Church 
of England allows no one to hold a living, who hj^s 
not first subscribed, with a declaration of *^ unfeigor 



I 



201 



ed assent,'^ the thirty-nine articles; acknowledg- 
ing all these to be " agreeable to the word of God." 
In her canons, — which her clergy, at their ordina- 
tion, swear they will observe, — it is decreed, that all 
dissenters '' be ipso facto excommunicated ;'' — that 
all Popish recusants '^ be ipso facto excommunica- 
ted;" — that whoever denies the King's supremacy, 
" be ipso facto excommunicated;" — that whoever 
affirms, that the Church of England is not a true 
and apostolic church, " is ipso facto excommunica- 
ted *j- — that whoever asserts, that the worship of 
the Church of England is superstitious, ^' is ipso 
facto excommunicated ;" that whoever affirms, that 
the government of the Church of England is repug- 
nant to the word of God, " is ipso facto excommu- 
nicated ;" that whoever shall affirm, that its mode 
of consecration is repugnant to the word of God, 
" be ipso facto excommunicated ;" that whoever 
shall separate himself from the communion of the 
Church of England " is ipso facto excommunicated;" 
that whoever shall set up a new form of worship 
'' is ipso facto excommunicated." Such as these are 
some of the leading canons of the English Church. 
They, thus, place under the ban of excommunica* 
tion, all sects, and descriptions of persons, who are 
not within the pale of that establishment. So that 
its clergy, and real members, must, — if they judge 
consistently with those strange and astonishing 
instruments, — consider all persons, who are under 
that ban, as being, at the same time, under the 
sentence of reprobation, and unfit also for Christian 



202 

burial : for, such as these are the alleged effect, and 
punishment, of excommunication. Considering, 
therefore, these awful consequences, and remonstrat- 
ing against them, the Presbyterians, in 1660, made 
this very just observation on them, — that ** the 
composers of them must maintain themselves to be 
infallible, or else they must design to tyrannise over 
men's consciences/' 

In like manner, if we look at the conduct of the 
French Protestant churches, we find there again the 
same kind of inconsistencies. In the synod of Foi, 
anno 1578, we even find, that the fathers of that 
assembly agreed to allow " four of their ministers 
to settle, and conclude, all the points of faith that 
were to be believed.'' In the synod of Vitre, anno 
1617, its members obliged all the provinces "to 
believe, and in all things to obey, their decisions.'' 
In 1618, the Independents having maintained, that 
each church should be governed by its own laws, so 
that men snould not be obliged to submit to the 
authority of synods, or the orders of conferences, 
for the regulation of their faith, — the synod of 
Charenton, upon this, solemnly declared, — *' that 
such system is injurious to the church ; that it opens 
the door to extravagant opinions ; that if it were 
adopted, there would be as many religions as there 
are parishes." Under the head of " discipline," 
the same French churches decreed, that " the nation- 
al synod, by the word of God, has the power of 
making Jinal decisions, to which, if men refuse 
entire obedience, they shall be excommunicated." I 



203 

might cite, as similar to these, the decrees of many 
other Protestant churches in Germany, Switzerland, 
Holland, &c. 

Now, I will simply ask this question, — What, in 
all the above conduct, do we trace, but the grossest 
violation of the genuine principles of the Reforma- 
tion ? What is it, in reality, but acting, as if the 
authors of such decrees were infallible? By the 
principles of the Reformation, every individual has 
the right to interpret the sacred Scriptures; and is 
the judge and arbiter of his ow^n belief. And if so, — 
is it not, therefore, an act of tyranny to excommu- 
nicate the man, who, — merely acting as he is bound, 
or at least bidden, to do, and judging for himself, — 
only follows the suggestions of his own understand- 
ing? According to those principles, the Socinian 
himself, although he believes profanely, yet only 
believes, as by those principles^ he is allowed to do, 
or even should do. He reads, interprets, judges, 
and determines, for himself. And this is precisely 
what the rule of Protestantism bids him do. Whence, 
the Protestant churches that condemn him for his 
belief, condemn, in reality, their own leading 
maxims, and are guilty of an act of inconsistency. 
They declare him free, and yet load him with 
chains; call him a man, yet treat him as a child; 
proclaim him a lion, and still mock him as a lamb. 
" You have established a system,'^ says Dr. Doyle 
to the established clergy, " which sanctions heresy, 
and condemns it; which invites to schism, and 
punishes it; which tells the believer to hear the 



204 

church, and teaches him to prefer his own opinion, 
however monstrous and absurd, to her most solemn 
judgments. Why, a church thus constituted, is inco- 
herent, and inconsistent, — a hulk, thrown upon the 
waters, without helm or compass. 

*< Doubtless/' he continues, "the established 
church, in excommunicating schismatics and main- 
tainers of conventicles, is very inconsistent and 
absurd. For, she excommunicates them for doing 
what she herself has done. She calls them heathens, 
because they, in the exercise of their judgment, reject 
her creed, and frame one for themselves; whilst she 
proclaims to them, that, in doing so, they act agree- 
ably to the will of God ; that she can give them no 
assurance, that her own doctrine is a whit preferable 
to theirs; and that Christ, and herself, have given | 
them a license to think on religion as it listeth them, ' 
and speak in their conventicles as they think. This, • 
no doubt, is excessively inconsistent, and absurd, in 
the established church. But she is rich, and power- 
ful, and therefore entitled to indulge in all the luxury 
of absurdity and error. 

*' If her absurdities are hinted at, she points to 
her lawn sleeves, her gilded palaces, her trains of 
equipages, her millions of acres, her tenths of two 
kingdoms ; and in the language of a bloated epicure, 
says, '^You vulgar Cynic, how can I be wrong?" 
Should he laugh, — as I am sometimes obliged to do, 
— at her ignorance, her insolence, her pomp, and 
pride, she opens her armory, more stowed with 
weapons than a star-chamber, or inquisition : more 



205 

ill-savoured than a lady's dressing-room j and lets 
loose upon him a whole legion of her satellites j 
having one hand armed with calumny and sophistry, 
the other filled with newspapers, tracts, pamphlets, 
reviews, replies, rejoinders, charges, sermons, and 
speeches. With these, the heathen, or publican, is 
at once oppressed : and if he learns not to revere 
the wisdom, and respect the power, of the church, 
he will at least learn to protect his own person ; 
and to preserve by silence, and submission, under 
whatsoever injustice or wrong, any property which 
he may be suffered to possess.^' 

(H.) Page 74. 

The Oaths of our Legislators, Sfc. 

There is something, that is hardly less astonish- 
ing than it is awful, in the circumstance of the oaths 
and declarations which, in this country, are requir- 
ed from our senators, magistrates, &c, ere they are 
allowed to perform the duties of their respective 
situations. It ought to appear incredible, that tests 
so singular should ever have been proposed in an 
enlightened nation ; but impossible, that they should 
ever have been adopted in a Christian one. We 
have lately, indeed, heard the wisdom and piety of 
some of our legislators, expressing their repugnance, 
and lamenting the disgrace, at being compelled to 
submit to the needless, but still frightful, absurdity. 
^^The oath, and declaration, taken by Protest- 

18 



206 

ants,'' says Dr. Doyle, ^' proceed to set forth, that 
*^ there is not any transubstantiation of the elements 
of bread and wine, into the body and blood of Christ, 
at, or after, the time of the consecration thereof, by 
any person whatsoever: and that the invocation, or 
adoration, of the Virgin Mary, or any other saint, 
and the sacrifice of the Mass, as they are now used 
in the Church of Rome, are superstitious, and 
idolatrous/' 

"This portion of the oath and declaration, though 
not partaking of any political character, and intro- 
duced chiefly through religious spleen, is more 
painful to a man of an upright conscience, than 
even the former part : and to read it merely, is 
sufficient to show, how well it is calculated to sup- 
press peace, and to foment ill-will between members 
of the same community. 

" I shall say nothing of what our church teaches 
on the subject of transubstantiation. But, I am bold 
to say, that no man, who reads Doctor Parker's 
(the Bisliop of Oxford) Reasons for abrogating the 
Testy will swear, or declare to God, without pain, 
that ' he believes, there is not any transubstantiation 
of the bread and wine, at or after the time of con- 
secration.' But, even admitting that there is not, 
how can an appeal to Heaven, on such a subject, be 
justified? Whereas, we should not only suppose, 
but knoiLV (and knowledge, according to Locke, im- 
plies certainty,) that what we swear is conformable 
to the truth. 



£07 

" I have heard, that, when my Lord Grey, and 
General Thornton, brought forward this subject, it 
was observed by many members, that the declara- 
tion was exceedingly objectionable f but, that it was 
taken with a certain intention, or in a sense differ- 
ent from that, conveyed by the words which com- 
pose it. Now, besides that mental reservations, and 
equivocations, are not only unworthy of gentlemen, 
and Christians, but also expressly excluded in the 
declaration itself,— I cannot conceive, why a form 
of words, impious, perhaps, in their tenor, dubious in 
sense, useless and unnecessary as a test of religious 
faith, but, above all, provokingly offensive, and. 
even insulting, not only to the Catholics of the em- 
pire, but to the whole Catholic world, — should, 
through indolence or bigotry, be let to remain on the 
statute book. Lord Eldon, or the Bishop of Can- 
terbury, may be able to account for it. But, to a 
person unacquainted with state secrets, or feeling a 
reverence for the awful name of God, or being at- 
tached to the simplicity of truth, — it is indeed inex- 
plicable. 

" The invocation of the saints, and the sacrifice 
of the Mass, * superstitious, and idolatrous !' This 
is repeated annually by every corporation officer 
throughout the kingdom; and not only by these; 
but every bishop, every judge, every sheriff, every 
clergyman, every lawyer, every attorney, every 
man going into parliament, holding office under the 
crown, or entering upon almost any legal profes- 
sion, if he be of the established church,— rmust de- 



208 

clare, upon oath, his belief, that the invocation of 
the saints, and the sacrifice of the Mass, are 'super- 
stitious, and idolatrous!!^ The husband of the 
Catholic wife, the parent of the Catholic child, if a 
Protestant of the established church, must do this, 
or sacrifice his family, and perhaps his fortune, as 
well as his honours. The public oflicer, who invites 
his Catholic friend to dine, or who, in his turn, sits 
at the board of his heterodox neighbour, must pre- 
pare for this social intercourse, by proving, upon 
oath, his belief, that his host, his guest, his neigh- 
hour, his friend, is an idolater. And the magistrate 
who sits on the bench, the judge who dispenses jus- 
tice, must not, — cannot, — take their seats, until 
they have sworn, that it is their belief, that their 
suitors, — that all the Catholics who expect justice 
in mercy at their hands, — are idolaters. If this ob- 
ligation were imposed upon corporators, and tithe- 
collectors, it would be qoite in character, as their 
whole life is employed in opposition to the public 
good : and it might be necessary to steel their hearts 
against the victims of their oppression. But, to im- 
pose such a burden upon liberal, enlightened, and 
honest men, this is quite intolerable. 

'' To declare the sacrifice of the Mass to be ' ido* 
latry,' is really absurd, because idolatry is the wor- 
ship of the creature as God ; whereas, at Mass, no 
Catholic ever worshipped any thing but God. The 
thought of worshipping the appearance of bread 
in the consecrated Host, never enters their mind. 
Their homage is exclusively directed to Christ. We 



209 

believe that Christ, tliough present, is veiled from 
our eyes ; and it is Him alone^ that we adore ; it is 
to Him alone J that we pay our homage i and not to 
any creature in heaven or upon the earth. 

'' The case is the same with regard to the invoca- 
tion, — or as it is called, the ' adoration' of the Vir- 
gin, and of the saints. Now, it may be curious to 
show, that the belief of the Catholic on this subject, 
— which the Protestant swears to be idolatrous, is — 
like that on many other subjects, equally reviled — 
substantially the same as his own, 

'' Catholics, and Protestants, each, believe, ' in 
the communion of saints,' — it being an article of our 
common creed. Thus, all are agreed, that the mem- 
bers of the church on earth and in heaven, are uni- 
ted by charity, or the love of each other. They al- 
so agree, that this charity is an active principle, al- 
ways operating, or desiring to do all the good in it 
power to the object of its affection. It is agaik 
agreed, that the members of the church who are in 
heaven, see God face to face, &c. And why, there- 
fore, says the Catholic, may they not pray to him 
for their absent brethren ? Were not prayers and 
supplications for their brethren part of their occu- 
pation, whilst in this world ? And what is the rea- 
son why they cannot pray for them now, as they did 
whilst on earth ? Are they too busy ? Is their cha- 
rity extinguished; or has it relaxed into indiffer- 
ence ?" &c.^ 

♦Many of the most distinguished theologians, that adorn the 
annals of the estahlished church, — men who had seriously 
lb* 



210 

(I.)Pa^ 119. 

The general state of Frotestantisnu 

The state of Protestantism in (xermany is thus 

described by a multitude of writers. '' It cannot,' 



99 



considered the nature cf cur doctrines, — such men as Sheldon, 
Taylor, Forbes, Montague, Thorndvke.. Sec. — declare positively, 
that, neither in cui' vrcrsnip of the Eucharist, nor in our renera- 
tion of the saints, is there any thing ihat merits the reproach of 
idolatry. They treat the accusation as a caiumny, and even as 
an injury to the establish eh church itself. " In plain terms," 
says the learned Thcrndyke, ''we make ourselves schismatics, 
by grounding our reformation upon this pretext, that the church 
of Route is idolatrous. So that should this church declare, that 
the change which v,-e call ''Reformation'* is ^-rounded upon 
this supposition, T ntust then acknowledge that we are the 
schismjatics. For, the prcfession of idolatry necessarily sigiiifies 
utter apostacy from Christianity to paganism/' Even the 
severe and orthodox writers of the British Critic, speaking 
lately of the question, v-'hether cur invocation of the saints be 
idolAtrcus or not. verp candidly allov,-. that ''there is not any 

oaths which solemnly, before G:d, attest titc tjua.,.;^^ c: cur 
idjlatry I and how awful and astonishiog, still nnore, the circum- 
stance, that men should take sum oaths, completely uninstruct- 
ed, and uninformed, upon the s^oject I 

The chief reason why the Protestant considers the adoration 
which we pay to the Eucharist as an. act of idolatry, is because 
the mivstery, tliey contend, cor.tradicts the evidence of the 
senses. Such as this is even the incessant argument employed 
by a set of theologians, who, owning the divine omnipotence, 
and the necessity cf mysteries in religion, ought hence to reason 
better. '< The doctrine of transubstantation," says the liberal 
and learned Mr. Hallara, ''does not, as is vulg-arly supposed. 



211 

says Mr. Jacob, " be denied, nor ought it to be con- 
cealed, that many of the German clergy of both 
sects, — Lutheran and Calvinistic, — had, previously 
to the late reunion, given up, not only the peculiar 
doctrines of their respective churches, but even the 
Christian faith itself; and that to such a degree^ 
that even our avowed Socinians would, by them, 
be considered as equally credulous with the ortho- 
dox clergy/' (Tour.) 

" The majority of pastors, and professors of di- 
vinity, in G^'many, for about the last thirty years, 
have called themselves Rationalists. They are, in 
other words, decided BdstsJ^^ (Haldane, Review 
of the conduct of the Bible Society.) 

'^ In Germany, Protestantism is now a mere nega- 
tion ; for, not even has each sect any common pro- 
fession whatsoever. The name expresses, not what 
it believes, but what it disbelieves. It is not, it de- 
clares. Catholic I but it refuses to declare what it 

contradict the evidence of our senses ; since our senses can re- 
port nothing as to the unknown being", which the schoolmen 
denominate substance; and which a/one is the subject of this 
conversion." 

In like manner, comparing together the three great leading 
systems of the Christian world in relation to the Eucharist,— 
that of the real presence, admitted by the Lutherans and the 
church of England, that of the Calvinistic societies, and that of 
the Catholic church,— comparing these three together, the 
same candid author observes .— " It can hardly fail to strike 
every unprejudiced reader, that, as the Romish tenet of transub- 
stantiation is the best^ so that of the Calviuists is the worst 
imagined of the three."— Constitutional Hist, 



L 



212 

really is, — that is, it presents no positive idea. Once 
it lived by hatred, and animosity ; now, it is dying 
of indifference. It feels, that by losing the feverish 
strength which animated it formerly, it is losing its 
life. Hence, in order to put a good face upon the 
thing, and in an excess of desperate joy, its pastors 
have thought proper to celebrate a Secular Feast." 
(Philomate Civarron.) 

'' A large portion of the Protestant churches of 
Germany hailed the principles of Rationalism with 
delight, and spread with eagerness this purer sys- 
tem of Christianity. It was taught by her divines 
from the pulpit ; by her professors from the chairs. 
It was addressed to the old, as the exhortation which 
was to free them from the weight and burden of an- 
cient prejudices and observances; and to the young, 
as that knowledge which alone could make them 
truly wise, or send them into life with right and ra- 
tional views. It need not be added, that the Pro- 
testant church of that country is the mere shadow of 
a name.'' (Rose, on the state of the Protestant Re- 
ligion in Germany.) 

'^ In France,'' says Mr. Haldane, " it may easily 
be conceived, how unfit the great body of the Pro- 
testant ministers must be for their office. Arians, 
Socinians, Neologists, — of no fixed opinion whatever 
as respects the Gospel, — they are, in general, blind 
leaders of the blind." (Review, &c.) 

^* In Prussia, go almost where you will, it is too 
well known that the Protestant clergy are in a state 



21S 

of Neologian darkness/* — (that is, they are mere 

» Deists.) (IdO 
^^ In Hungary/' says the same writer, ^^the state 
of religion filled him with sorrow and grief, to be- 
P hold such a multitude of people, who still bear the 
name of Protestant Christians — but who are little 
better than the heathens, either in refined scepticism, 
or gross superstition. The value of a minister 
amongst them is rated according to his oratorical 
powers, — no matter what doctrine he teaches, or 
what tenets he holds.'* (Ibid.) 

Similar to these are the portraits which he pre- 
sents of the slate of Protestantism in Holland, 
Sweden, and Denmark. He exhibits Socinianism, 
incredulity, and a general indifference to all religion, 
as prevailing every where in these countries, a- 
mongst the pastors, professors, and nominal mem- 
bers, of this now degenerated institution. 

The description, which not only Mr. Haldane, 
but a multitude of other writers, have given of 
the state of the Protestant religion in this country^ is 
hardly less aflSicting than the preceding. " What," 
says the above writer, '' must the Catholics conclude 
concerning Protestants, and the i^ause of the Re- 
formation, when they see, that the name Protestant 
Pastor is sufficient to sanction every heresy ; while 
the doctrines of the Gospel are entirely disregarded ? 
No wonder that they openly declare, that the state 
of religion amongst Protestants, forms the sti'ongest 
argument against the Reformation. In their church, 
there are fundamental doctrines retained, of the 



214 

highest importance, which if really embraced, will 
conduct to eternal life. But, the state of the public 
ministry, in many Protestant churches, is such, that 
salvation, by means of it, is impossible.'^ (Ibid.) 

" In this country,'' says the late Bishop of Dur- 
ham, " there is an almost universal lukewarmness, 
and indifference, respecting the essentials of reli- 
gion." (Charge.) 

'*The characteristics of the present times are, 
confessedly, incredulity, and an unprecedented in- 
difference to the religion of Christ." (Dr. Tomline, 
Charge.) 

''The populace of England," says the Quarterly 
Reviewers, " are more ignorant of their religious 
duties, than they are in any other Christian coun- 
try. ' It would make any one Christian heart bleed, 
to think/ says Bishop Croft, ' how many thousand 
souls tliere are in this land, that have no more 
knowledge of God than heathens. Thousands of 
the mendicant condition, and thousands of the mean 
husbandry-men, as they grow up to be men, grow 
mere babes in religion, — so ignorant, as scarce to 
know their heavenly Father.' M this day^ the case 
is worse than Bi^iop Croft represented it.^^ 

But if too the statements of many of our Protest- 
ant WTiters be correct, then it is an unhappy fact, 
that the ignorance of religion does not prevail only 
amongst the '' populace of England," but extends 
also to its most exalted, and best educated, classes, 
— pervading even those very asylums, which should 
be, — and were once-, — the schools of Christian wis- 



I 



215 

dom, and the nurseries of piety. Thus, speaking of 
the education at our universities, Dr. Rennel (no 
one could be better informed upon the subject) as- 
serts, ^* Young men of rank, and talents, are dismiss- 
ed from them without one single safeguard against 
the plausible and tremendous theories, which have 
turned more than one quarter of the world into an 
Aceldama, or field of blood. Of religion, its eviden- 
ces, doctrines, and motives, they are utterly, and 
grossly, ignorant/' (Serm.) 

Similar to this is the account, which but a few 
weeks past, was given in the Spectator (newspaper,) 
respecting the order of education at Cambridge : 
(Why should not the statement apply equally to 
Oxford ?) ^^ We will bear our testimony,'' says the 
writer, " to the fact, that, in the assemblage of re- 
ligious foundations at Cambridge, no religion is 
taught ; little is felt j and that an open, or marked 
profession of it, is rather discountenanced than 
otherwise. Chapel is a bugbear, and a mockery, 
even to the pious ; divinity lectures, a sleepy form. 
After a time, students and fellows, who intend to 
go into orders, and are on the eve of it, draw up a 
little, and assume more regular and serious habits. 
With this exception, there never was a body of men 
less influenced by the spirit of religion. We can 
safely aver, that over the morals, or the religion, of 
the young men who go to Cambridge, there is no 
other check than what may arise from the deficiency 
of money or credit." 



216 

(K.) Page 151. 
Illiberality. 

The passage which I have affixed to the title-page 
of this treatise,— designed by Tertullian to express 
the general conduct of the enemies of the Catholic 
church in his time, — is very accurately descriptive 
of the method in which, in this country, our Pro- 
testant writers still treat it, at the present day. 
For, be the subject almost what it may, which 
these men discuss, and however much they may dif- 
fer upon every other question, — upon the question 
of our religion they are nearly all unanimous, — mis- 
representing and vilifying the divine institution, 
w ithout any regard to truth, to charity, or decorum. 
" Nihil enim interest illis, licet diverse tractanti- 
bus, dum ad unius veritatis expugnationem conspi- 
rent.'^ Such is our Protestant literature, when- 
ever there is question of the Catholic religion. 
Whence even Voltaire himself, although the most 
ruthless enemy of Catholicity, compares its Pro- 
testant adversaries to a set of gladiators , and to that 
class of gladiators, who fought blindfolded^ but still 
fought with the most desperate fury. The compa- 
rison, and the image, are most apposite. 

'' Our religion,'' says Dr. Doyle, "is so grossly 
misrepresented, that it is made to appear a very 
moral monster. From the sole of its foot, like its 
Founder, to the top of its head, there is no sound- 
ness in it. It is buffeted, spit upon, and covered 



217 

with a mantle of derision. It is scourged, and 
drenched with vinegar and gall. The waters of 
affliction are made to enter into its very soul. And 
it is when it is thus disfigured, that the bigot and 
the fanatic cry out, ' Away with it, away with it.' 
'^ When Burnet,'^ the same eloquent writer ob- 
serves, '' was, in 1686, admitted to the councils of 
the Prince and Princess of Orange at the Hague, 
and undertook to assist the revolution, which was 
then in progress, he fulfilled his engagement, chiefly 
by those writings, wherein he represented Popery, 
and tyranny, as inseparably blended together. 
From that period till the present, those who are 
opposed to the Catholics have frequently shifted 
their attacks ; but they have never ceased to employ 
such men as Burnet, for the purpose of coupling 
our religon with something odious. At one time, 
they represent us, as the advocates and supporters 
of arbitary power ; at another, as the abettors of 
principles hostile to kingly government. Some- 
times they introduce us as the very worst descrip- 
tion of idolaters ; and again as persons who violate 
our oaths, and keep no faith with heretics. For 
upwards of a century, they held us forth as ad- 
herents of an exiled family; and when that family 
ceased to exist, they transferred our allegiance from 
the Stuarts to the Pope. Besides these inherent 
faults in the system of Popery, they always hang 
about it shreds and patches, to excite contempt or 
ridicule. They bring our beads and our incense, 
our vestments and holy water-pots, our saints and 
19 



218 

onr pilgrimages; our prayers and our crosses; and 
they place these in such attitudes, as that they 
necessarily create laughter or disgust. By such 
means as these, they feed the passions of the vulgar, 
and keep alive the prejudices of the best-informed. 
They are so wealthy, and they have such an interest 
in our depression, that they do not hesitate to ex- 
pend large sums annually, in keeping such men as 
Burnet employed to vilify and defame us; whilst 
anniversary sermons, bishops' charges, new editions 
of Fox's Martyrs, and a cloud of tracts and pam- 
phlets, intercept every eflFort that we can make to 
dispel the public illusion. 

^^ England has always been governed by a party, 
and that party has always kept the nation hood- 
winked. Since the time of Elizabeth, the Catholics 
have been uniformly oppressed, and persecuted, by 
those who governed, and who enriched themeslves 
at their expense. Did they profess their loyalty ; 
they were told that they were traitors. Did they 
swear to it; they were accused of perjury. Did 
they prove it by their works on any emergency; they 
were laughed at, and abused, when the danger was 
over.'^ 

I should like to present a few specimens of the 
temper which now animates a very large portion of 
the established clergy in our regard. 1 he speeches 
and sermons of many of these men are indeed pre- 
cious monuments of eloquence, — embodying every 
thing, that is virulent in hostility, and scurrilous in 
insult; — every thing, that by rancour, ridicule^ 



219 

calumny, and misrepresentation, is calculated to 
inflame the bigotry of the violent, and to cheat the 
simplicity of the weak ,• in short, every thing, that 
is adapted to support, and feed, the prejudices of the 
public against their parent church. A mere note 
does not allow me to cite extracts of these effusions. 
However, by the way of illustration, I will just 
quote a few lines from a speech, which is now ac- 
cidentally lying before me. They are part of a 
discourse of the Vicar of Harrow, — the Rev. Mr. 
Cunningham, — one of those itinerant apostles who, 
besides edifying the good people of Harrow, goes 
about far and near, — kind, amiable man ! — to warn 
and instruct the public, what wicked, dangerous, 
blind^ and benighted beings, we Papists are. 
^^ When I am speaking,'' says the eloquent orator, 
" of Popery, I know no reason why I should mince 
the matter. I shall rejoice at the obtaining of pro- 
selytes from such a system. I feel, that I hate, I 
abominate it. And if I had a thousand hands, 
and a thousand sledgehammers, I would use 
them in endeavouring to annihilate, to sweep 
from the earth, that detested and abominable 
monster. I say, I feel this. I wish it were 
in my power to crush it to atoms,'' &c. The 
only circumstance which in all this scene is awful 
in our regard, is the fact, that, savage and ferocious 
as this language is, still it was cheered by a large 
audience, ^' with tremendous applause." I could 
cite many other samples of clerical eloquence simi- 
lar to the above ; or at all events, if not quite equal 
to it in tragic barbarity, — still, so uncharitable, and 



220 

unkind, as would much better become the priests of 
Moloch, than the priests of the meek and benevolent 
Jesus. Whilst, in like manner, what innumerable 
examples might I not easily produce from the 
speeches, and sermons, of our less intemperate ad- 
versaries, of disgusting ribaldry, of contemptible 
nonsense, of disgraceful misrepresentations, &c. 
These are, nearly always, such as to excite the dis- 
gust, and pity, of the Catholic ; and to call forth, 
sometimes, the severe reprehensions even of the Pro- 
testants themselves.^ We have no generous ene- 
mies. 

* Thus, speaking of the speech delivered lately by the Rev. 
Mr. Fry, before a very large and distinguished assembly at 
Aylesbury, the eloquent writers of the Times remark, **The 
speech of Parson Fry is enough to make other clergymen hold 
down their heads with shame, and mortification, for despicable 
folly, alternating now and then with beastly ribaldry, indicating 
in every sentence a mean, malignant, and ferocious spirit, 
undisguised by any one outward incident, or pretension, of an 
educated gentleman, as it was unredeemed by the smallest 
spark of Christian charity or forbearance : it has never been 
our fortune to read any printed speech, professing to have in- 
sulted the ears of an English audience, so disgusting as that, 
which is given by the reporters, of Parson Fry." — And yet, 
again, was the orator loudly cheered ! 

Thus, too, describing the character of these men, the liberal 
Mr. Berwick, but the other day, says of them. " To them be 
tlie praise, to them be the glory, of having evoked the demon 
of intolerance,— of having thrown fresh ingredients into the 
caldron of national discontent, which was already bubbUng and 
boiUng over. Day after day, speeches of these reverend 
ministers are recorded, -set, laboured speeches, evidently not 
the product of the excitation of the moment, but the offspring 



221 ' 

Wherefore, let me here make just this one observa- 
tion : — The want of charity is always reprehensible; 
but it is reprehensible, above all, in the ministers of 
religion. For, if kindness and benevolence should 
reside any where, it should be in the heart, and 
upon the tongue, of the Christian pastor. But, not 
only is it the case, that the illiberality of the establish- 
ed clergy, in our regard, is a very gross infringement 
of the laws of charity,— it is, moreover, at the same 
time, a very odious violation of every principle both 
of gratitude and generosity. It is ungrateful ; be- 
cause the fact is undeniable that for all, or nearly all, 
the advantages and comforts which these men enjoy, 
they are indebted to the benevolence of the Catholic, 
whom they revile. Ours were but lately those 
riches, which now support their families, or feed 
and maintain their luxury : — ours, those magnificent 
establishments and foundations, to which they are 

of patient meditation, and laborious study. With the vulgarity 
of taste, the poverty of diction, the blunt and brutal scurrility, 
displayed in these elaborate compositions, I do not quarrel. I 
am fully aware, that the black heart is generally attended by 
the weak intellect, — Providence thus, in its mercy, neutralising 
the suggestions of one by the impotence of the order. But, as 
a Christian, and a man, I cannot let the sentiments conveyed 
pass by, without expressing my abhorrence of them. As a 
man, I lament over the degrading form, that humanity has 
assumed in the persons of beings openly thirsting for carnage, 
and their fellow-creatures blood; while, as a Protestant, and a 
Christian, 1 blush and shudder at the avowal of sentiments, 
from which an infidel would revolt with horror," &c. (Speech 
at the Rotunda.) 

19* 



222 

indebted for their education, and their learning : — 
ours, that splendour, which adorns their temples ; 
in short, ours, those enorraous treasures, which now 
render the established clergy the far richest hierar- 
chy in the Christian universe. It is ungenerous ; be- 
cause, as I have just been stating, — the strength, 
the security, the peace, and prosperity of this coun« 
try, are, after all, every where defended, and every 
where supported, by the loyalty, the courage, and 
the devotion of the persecuted Catholic. Protestant 
greatness reposes upon Catholic protection. For, 
take away this, and what, I then ask, would, to- 
morrow, be the fate of England ? 

(L.) Page 153. 

A COMPARATIVE VIEW OE THE PROTESTANT AND 
CATHOLIC RELIGIONS. 

The Frotestant Religim. 

Th« following objections to the Protestant reli- 
gion are alleged by the " immortal ^^ Chillingwortb. 
They may be found in Wood^s Athense Oxonienses. 
*' First, because {jerpetual visible profession, 
which could never be wanting to the religion of 
Christ, nor any part of it^ is apparently wanting to 
the Protestant religion, so far as concerns the points 
in contestation. £dly, Because Luther and his fol- 
lowers, separating from the cimrch of Rome, sepa* 
rated from all churches, pure or impure, true or un- 
true, then being in the world j upon which ground I 



22^ 

canclude, that either God's promises did fail of per- 
formance, if there were then no church in the worldy 
which held all things necessary, and nothing repug- 
nant to salvation ; or else, that Luther and his sec- 
taries, separating ft'ora all churches then in the 
world, and so from the true, if there w^re any true^ 
were damnable schismatics* 3dly, Because, if any 
credit might be given to as credible records as any 
extant, the doctrine of the Catholic^ues hath been 
frequently confirmed, and the opposite doctrine of 
the Protestants confounded, with supernatural and 
divine miracles. 4thly, Because many points of 
Protestant doctrine are the damned opinions of here- 
tics, condemned by the primitive church. 5thly, Be- 
cause the prophecies of the Old Testament, touching^ 
the conversion of kings and nations to the true reli- 
gion of Christ, have been accomplished in and by the 
Catholique Roman religion, and the professors of it. 
6thly, Because the doctrine of the church of Rome 
is conformable, and the doctrine of the Protestants 
contrary, to the doctrine of the fathers of the primi- 
tive church, even by the confession of the Protes- 
tants themselves ; I mean those fathers who lived 
within the compass of 600 years, to whom Protes- 
tants themselves do very frequently and confidently 
appeal. 7thly, Because the first pretended refor- 
mers had neither extraordinary commission from 
God, nor ordinary mission from the church, to 
preacli Protestant doctrine. 8thly, Because Luther, 
to preach against the Mass (which contains the 
most material points now In controversy,) was per- 



224 

suaded by reasons, suggested to him by the devil him- 
self disputing with him.^ So himself professeth in his 
book de Mssa Privately that all men might take heed 
of following him, who professeth himself to follow 
the devil. • Qthly, Because the Protestant cause is 

4 

* Incredulity may smile, or impiety deride the circumstance, 
but it is a very awful, and a very singular, fact, — a fact as per- 
plexing" to the Protestant, as it is disgraceful to the Protestant 
cause,— a fact, too, which is not even so much as called in 
question, — that the two, leading and most important tenets of 
the Reformation were, both of them, acknowledgedly derived 
from the prince of darkness. I allude to the tenets relating to 
the Eucharist. Thus, we have, in the first place, the testimony 
of Luther, very candidly admitting, and even triumphantly 
boasting, that it was the above enlightened monitor, who, — 
instructing him, that transubstantiation is an error,— engaged 
him to substitute the system of consubstantiation in its room. 
The account of the strange, but frightful conference, betw*een 
the two learned doctors, may be found in all the early editions 
of the great Reformer's works, — both in those which were 
published by himself, and in those which were, soon after, 
printed by his disciples. 

In like manner, we have, next, the testimony of the apostle 
Zuinglius, — detailed, and formal, as the narrative of Luther,— 
that it was from the same learned teacher that he too received 
the useful information, that the Eucharist is neither more nor 
less than an empty figure ; and that the doctrine of the real 
presence is a completely human invention. The dialogue 
between the two enlightened theologians is related at some 
length in Zuinglius's book. Be Subsidio Eucharistice. It resem- 
bles the preceding one with the arch-apostle. There is only 
this important difference between them, that Zuinglius very 
seriously informs us, that *' he had quite forgotten the very 
interesting circumstance, whether his instructor was black or 
-white /" 



I 



225 

now, and hath been from the beginning, maintained 
with gross falsifications and calumnies, whereof 
their prime controversy writers are notoriously and 
in high degree guilty. lOthly, Because, by deny- 
ing all human authority, either hy Pope, or coun- 
cils, or church, to determine controversies of faith, 
they have abolished all possible means of suppres- 
sing heresy, or of restoring unity to the church.'' 
Such are the reasons which induced Chillingworth to 
abandon the Protestant, and to embrace the Catho- 
lic religion. It is true, indeed, that, tempted by the 
prospects of promotion, and urged by the restless- 
ness of his temper, he, ere long, renounced his new- 
ly-adopted religion, and became a member of the es- 
tablished church ; although, as Gibbon remarks, he 
had positively declared, but a few weeks before he 
took the step, that he could not subscribe the thirty- 
nine articles, " without subscribing to his own dam- 
nation.'^ However, he did not long remain a believ* 
ing member of this church : for, finding, — as all 
reasoning Protestants do find, — that with the princi- 
ples of the Reformation, consistently applied^ it is im- 
possible for men to stand still, — and that between 
Catholicity and incredulity, there is no firm ground 
to stand upon, — finding this, he very early threw 
himself into the abysses of Socinianisra. Gibbon in- 
deed asserts, that, '' according to the popular opi- 
nion of the man, his anxious inquiries subsided at 
length in philosophic indifference.*' However, bo 
this as it may, — the strange versatility of his char- 
acter lessons none of the force of his above-cited 
arguments. 



226 



The Catholic Church. 

The following recommendations of the Catholic 
church are extracted from the works of the celebra- 
ted Jeremy Taylor. 

" There are many considerations which may re- 
tain persons of much reason, and more piety, in its 
communion. They know it to have been the re- 
ligion of their forefathers, which had possession of 
men's understandings before Protestantism had a 
name.'' He then enumerates the succeeding argu- 
ments in its favour : '' First, its doctrines^ having 
had a long continuance and possession of the church ; 
which, therefore, cannot easily be supposed in the 
present possessors to be a design, since they have 
received them from so many ages. Its long prescrip' 
tiouy which is such a prejudice, as cannot with many 
arguments be retrenched ; as relying upon these 
grounds — that truth is more ancient than falsehood 
— that God w^ould not, for so many ages, forsake 
his church, and leave her in error. Then comes 
the splendor and beauty of that church ; its pompous 
service ; the stateliness and solemnity of its hyer- 
archy^ its name, ^Catholic;' the antiquity of its 
doctrines ; the continual succession of its bishops, 
and their immediate derivation from the apostles; 
its title to succeed St. Peter. Add to this the 
multitude and variety of people which are of its 
persuasion ; the consent of elder ages ; the great 
consent of one part with another, contrasted with 



227 

the great differences which are commenced among 
their adversaries. To this again add, its happiness 
in being the instrument in converting diverse na- 
tions; the advantage of monarchical (the Papal) 
government, the benefit of which its members daily 
enjoy ; the piety and austerity of its religious orders; 
the single life of its priests and bishops ; the severity 
of its fasts ; the great reputation of its bishops for 
faith and sanctity; the known holiness of some of its 
religious founders of orders; its miracles; the ac- 
cidents and casualties, which have happened to its 
adversaries ; the oblique acts, and indirect proceed- 
ings of some of these who have departed from it; 
and above all, the name of ' heretick* and ' schisma- 
tick,' which the Catholic church has fastened on 
them. Protestants commit themselves by the conduct 
of the new reformers ; at first few, and of the lowest 
rank of the clergy, being under ecclesiastical cen- 
sures, assisted against their spiritual superiors by 
some secular powers, when both they and these 
were subject to that ecclesiastical hyerarchy which 
they opposed." 

Extract from Sir Edwyn Sandys's Relation of the 
Western Religions : — 

" Of all probable proofs, the Catholic church 
testimony is the most probable. What madness, 
then, it is for any man to tire out his soul, and to 
waste away his spirits, in tracing out all the thorny 
paths of the controversies of these days, wherein to 
err is no less easy than dangerous ! Why not 



228 

rather betake himself to the right path of truth, 
whereunto God and nature, reason and experience, 
do all give witness? That is, why not associate 
himself to that church, whereunto the custody of 
this heavenly and supernatural truth hath been 
from heaven itself committed? Why not weigh 
discreetly, which is the true church ; and having 
once found it, why not receive faithfully and obedi- 
ently what it delivers ?'* The above words, it is 
true, are spoken in the person of the Catholic ; but 
Sir Edwyn returns no answer to them. He even 
proceeds to enumerate the following recommenda- 
tions of the Catholic church : — 

''The Catholic church was founded by the apos- 
tles, with promise, that the gates of hell should not 
prevail against it. It has continued on now, till the 
end of 1600 years, with honourable and certain line, 
of near two hundred and forty popes, successors of 
Str Peter, — both tyrants, traitors, pagans, and 
hereticks, in vain wresting, raging, and undermin- 
ing it. All the general councils that ever were in 
the world, have approved and honoured it. God 
hath miraculously blessed it from above : so many 
learned doctors have enriched it with their writings ; 
armies of saints have embellished it with ther holi- 
ness; martyrs, with their blood; virgins, with their 
purity. Even at this day, amid the difficulties of 
unjust rebellions, and the unnatural revolts of her 
nearest children, she yet stretcheth out her arms to 
the utmost corners of the world ; newly embracing 
whole nations into her bosom. In all opposite 



229 

churches, there are found inward dissentions, and 
contrariety; change of opinions; uncertainty of 
revolutions; with robbing of churches; rebelling 
against governors ; and confusion of ord^r. In the 
Catholic church there is 'undivided unity; resolu- 
tions unalterable; the most heavenly order, reach- 
ing from the height of all power to the lowest of all 
subjection ; all with admirable harmony, and 
undefective correspondence, bending the same way 
to the effecting of the same purpose/' &c. 

(M.) Page 154. 

THE AUTHORS, AND POUNDEKS, OF THE CHURCH 
or ENGLAND. 

Its chief Apostle J Cranmer. 

The enlightened and candid writers of the Edin- 
burgh Review, speaking, in a late number, of the 
great founders of the Church of England, describe 
them thus : — " They were — a king, whose charac- 
ter may be best described, by saying, that he was 
despotism itself personified ; unprincipled ministers; 
a rapacious aristocracy; a servile parliament. 
Such were the instruments by which England was 
delivered from the yoke of Rome. The work, which 
had been begun by Henry, the murderer of his 
wives, was continued by Somerset, the murderer of 
his brother ; and completed by Elizabeth, the mur- 
derer of her guest. Sprung from brutal passion; 
nurtured by selfish policy,— the Reformation in 

20 



230 

England displayed little of what had, in other 
countries, distinguished it, — unflinching and un* 
sparing devotion, boldness of speech, and singleness 
of eye. Of those who had any important share in 
bringing the alteration about, the excellent Ridley 
was perhaps the only person who did not consider 
it as a mere political job. Even Ridley did not 
play a very prominent part. Among the statesmen 
and prelates, who principally gave the tone to the 
religious changes, there is one, and only one, whose 
conduct partiality itself can attribute to any other 
than interested motives. We need not say that we 
speak of Cranmer. 

" If we consider Cranmer merely as a statesman, 
he will not appear a much worse man than Wolsey, 
Gardener, Cromwell, or Somerset; but, when an 
attempt is made to set him up as a saint, it is scarce- 
ly possible for any man of sense, who knowst he 
history of the times well, to preserve his gravity. 
The shameful origin of his history, common enough 
in the scandalous chronicles of courts, seems strange- 
ly out of place in a hagiology. Cranmer rose 
into favour by serving Henry in the disgraceful 
affair of his first divorce. He promoted the mar- 
riage of Anne Boleyn with the king. On a frivol- 
ous pretence, he pronounced it null and void. On 
a pretence, if possible still more frivolous, he dis- 
solved ihe ties which bound the shameless tyrant to 
Anne of Cleves. He attached himself to Cromwell^ 
while tlie fortunes of Cromwell flourished; he 
voted for cutting off his head without a trial, when 



:& 



231 

the tide of royal favour turned. He conformed 
backwards and forwards, as the king changed his 
mind. While Henry lived, he assisted in condemn- 
ing to the flames those who denied the doctrine of 
transubstantiation ; when Henry died, he found out 
that the doctrine was false. He was, however, not 
at a loss for people to burn* The authority of his 
station, and of his grey hairs, was employed to over- 
come the disgust, with which an intelligent and 
virtuous child regarded persecution. 

'^ Intolerance is always bad ; but the sanguinary 
intolerance of a man who thus wavered in his creed, 
excites a loathing to which it is difficult to give 
vent, without calling foul names. Equally false to 
political and to religious obligations, he was first 
the tool of Somerset, and then the tool of Nor- 
thumberland. When the former wished to put his 
own brother to death, without even the form of a 
trial, lie found a ready instrument in Cranmer. In 
spite of the canon law, which forbade a churchman 
to take any part in matters of blood, the archbishop 
signed the warrant for the atrocious sentence. When 
Somerset had been, in his turn, destroyed, his 
destroyer received the support of Cranmer in his at- 
tempt to change the course of the succession. 

" The apology made for him by his admirers, on- 
ly renders his conduct more contemptible. He com- 
plied; it is said, againsthisbetter judgment, because 
he could not resist the entreaties of Edward ! A 
holy prelate of sixty, one would think, might be 
better employed by the bedside of a dying child, 



232 

than in committing crimes at the request of his dis- 
ciple. If he had shown half as much firmness when 
Edward requested him not to commit murder, he 
might have saved the country from one of the great- 
est misfortunes that it ever underwent. He became, 
from whatever motive, the accomplice of the worth- 
less Dudley. The virtuous scruples of another 
young and amiable mind were to be overcome. As 
Edward had been forced into persecution, Jane was 
to be seduced into usurpation. No transaction in 
our annals is more unjustifiable than this. To the 
part which Cranmer, and unfortunately some bet- 
ter men than Cranmer, took in this most reprehen- 
sible scheme, much of the severity with which Pro' 
testants were afterwards treated, must, in fairness, 
be ascribed. 

^^ The plot failed, popery triumphed, and Cran- 
mer recanted. Most people look upon his recanta- 
tion as a single blemish on an honorable life, — the 
frailty of an unguarded moment. But, in fact, it was 
in strict accordance with the system on which he 
had constantly acted. It was a part of a regular 
habit. It was not the first recantation that he had 
made; and in all probability, if it had answered 
his purpose, it would not have been the last. We do 
not blame him for not choosing to be burnt alive. It 
is no very severe reproach to any person, that he 
does not possess heroic fortitude. But, surely, a 
man who liked the fire so little, should have had 
some sympathy for others. A persecutor who inflicts 
nothing which he is not ready to endure, deserves 



233 

some respect ; but, when a man who loves his doc- 
trines more than the Jives of his neighbours, loves 
his own little finger better than his doctrines, a 
very simple argument, a fortiori, will enable us to 
estimate the amount of his benevolence. 

'^But his martyrdom, it is said, redeemed every 
thing. It is extraordinary, that so much ignorance 
should exist on this subject. The fact is, that if a 
martyr be a man who chooses to die rather than 
renounce his opinions, Cranmer was no more a 
martyr than Dr. Dodd. He died, solely because he 
could not help it. He never retracted his recanta- 
tion, till he found he had made it in vain. If Mary 
had suffered him to live, we suspect that he would 
have heard Mass, and received absolution, like a 
good Catholic, till the accession of Elizabeth ; and 
that he would then have purchased, by another 
apostacy, the power of burning men better and 
braver than himself. 

'^ We do not mean to represent him, however, as 
a monster of wickedness. He was not wantonly 
cruel or treacherous. He was merely a supple, 
timid, interested courtier, in times of frequent and 
violent change. 

" Somerset, with as little principle as his coadju- 
tor had a firmer and more commanding mind. Of 
Henry, an orthodox Catholic, excepting that he 
chose to be his own pope, — and of Elizabeth, who 
certainly had no objection to the theology of Rome, 
we need say nothing. But, these four persons were 
the great authors of the English Reformation. Three 



234 

of them had a direct interest iu the extension of the 
royal prerogative : the fourth was the ready tool of 
any who could frighten him. It is not difficult to 
see from what motives, and on what plan, such per- 
sons would be inclined to remodel the church. The 
scheme was merely to rob the BabyloniaB enchant- 
ress of her ornaments, in order to transfer the full 
cup of her sorceries to other hands, — spilling as little 
as possible by the way. The principal founders of 
the church of England were mere politicians." For 
a continuation of the subject, see the review of Mr. 
Haliam's Constitutional History. 



THE END. 



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